Avatard
by Paul Midnight
Summary: Sit and listen as I tell a tale, a dramatic adventure featuring the original cast and others! Starting with the beginning of the Avatar program, events through and after the film. Rated T for Cursing, Violence, and Romance!
1. Chapter 1: The Gamer

Disclaimer: Some material in this story may be offensive. It contains graphic language, fantasy violence, and implied romance. Some of the themes may also be suggestive or adult in nature. However it was not the author's intent to offend nor alienate anyone, simply tell an exciting, humorous, and romantic tale based in the world of James Cameron's Avatar, which the author holds no rights to. This work is intend under the parody laws and does not claim any ownership of nor connection to the Avatar properties or its creators/affiliates and so forth. This is a work of fan fiction and is the first such the author has uploaded to the site and hopes the reader will enjoy the tale, any feedback is appreciated.  
Whew! Now that that's over, have a seat as I tell this tale of woes and wars, love and laughter, dark before the dawn and happily ever after. I am your bard, and this is my story called:

* * *

**Avatard  
**By Paul Midnight

**Chapter I: The Gamer**

They said I had good brain chemistry, that was why they wanted me. I don't know for certain what that even means, but it had something to do with 'strong personalities which would transfer better to the host DNA-RNA sequence chain'. I still don't know what it means. I wasn't a scientist, I was an artist. I had a very strong creative center, and was ambidextrous kind of… I just know I was good at testing things. I'd been a game tester for a lot of things, and after that some of the more pronounced game link ups, and then beyond that it was a robotics tester because the game translated to training for military personal. I wasn't military, but I was a gamer. I could always find the glitch, the wrong part of the picture, every snag, ever snare, in the great pattern of code and linguistics. Didn't matter how many millions of endless data streams, I always found that one missing piece, that one movement or combination that screwed up everything. So I came highly recommended. I had some psychological troubles in the past, and because of that it took a lot for me to regain control of my mental facilities. I had more self control then a lot of people half my age.

It concerned them at first, there was a big deal about expenses I knew nothing about. But they saw my test record, my track record, and knew I was a sure thing. Even the Sistine chapel needed electricians and plumbers. So I started working for them, computer simulation first off. Playing some kind of VR game that tested how close they could get to brain and player character fusion. It wasn't anything flashy, just working on real response time instead of preprogrammed responses. Like, you know how in most games you hit a button or perform a hop and you can jump higher then anyone ever could? Well in this game you could only jump as far as you could actually jump. They had me doing serious running and jumping after the first few motion control sensors worked. Of course it later became a matter of laying in this wire-frame coffin for hours while they ran the most boring of tests over and over. Pick up the ball, toss it, catch it. That sort of thing. Not much top of the line. I figured they were a medical gig for rehabilitating injured soldiers or something… maybe even finally turning those walking mech suits into fully automated bots with no solider in the cockpit. But like I said, I didn't know for sure, I was just a tester.

It was odd though. They changed the human proportions way off, like, you were twelve feet tall with like a six foot reach or bigger. Then they began adding a balance mechanism for a tail, maybe to strengthen spinal injuries? In any case it took me a long while to get use to it, then it came natural. I'm a gamer. I learn on my feet, never had much use for tutorials. I'd been working with them for years perfecting this stuff. I was the one who suggest the coffin be enclosed so you had a sensory deprivation kind of effect, I was real proud of that suggestion, not so proud after being locked in the dark for hours… and the psychological implications took them weeks to figure out. It worked though. Everything I suggested worked, because I knew the system, found the bugs, and worked harder then anyone else on the team. Truth is I was beginning to feel lost in that program. Eaten by the machines… it felt like my soul was being sucked in. I didn't tell anybody this though, I knew MMO addiction and fought it, nothing to worry them about. They had a dream and I was going to help them get there. I was a master collaborator! I always preferred co-op play.

Then, one day the science team came in. Dr. Grace Augustine, she was a spearhead of the project, it was her baby. She was really happy to meet me because of all the good work I had done for them, and I was happy to meet her. She was a fox, red hair and everything. Rrrow rrrow! …I didn't say any of this mind you. That day she sat down with all of us and started talking about taking the project to the next level. They were going to being incorporating bio mechanics and hopefully, fully biological organisms under the command of human pilots. It was ground breaking, it was the future! aaand she needed "volunteers". See, the science couldn't be tested on humans without consent; it was a dangerous procedure and could potentialy lead to brain damage if something went wrong. A single glitch and you'd have a seizure. Because of this she asked the team of testers, if they wanted to back out, they could. They would find military personnel to do the work, risk lives for the greater good, but _she_ wanted people who knew the system. People she could trust, people who she could count on to work hard and find the problems. I was one of five who raised their hand. They called it the Avatar program.

…

Half a year of pure testing continued. This time with higher stakes. We started small, working to improve the link like lucid dreaming. I showed the most control and was the most promising when it came to linguistics. I was the first to make the 'tubheads' speak. They weren't lab rats, more like, nervous systems in a glass tube, that's why we called them tub heads. It was a unique experience going from VR sights to… I don't know, high definition photo realistic eye organs. I guess you could call them eyes. Anyway, long story short, we worked to get the nervous system to function as well as our own. It was awesome, and the glow from Dr. Augustine as we made progress kept me fired up to work harder. Her passion was infectious. We were like a locomotive to the future, nothing could stop us! …we had or first causality on a December afternoon. It was the first time we ever lost anyone, and it wasn't even because of the program, he just had a heart attack midway through the test and the system couldn't handle the interference. He was a good guy, James, we use to go bowling…

They nearly shut us down after that. Dr. Grace had to work hard to keep it up and running. She aged years in those weeks. We lost two more of the testers because they blamed the system. Grace joined the program herself. I stayed. I helped her get accustomed to the system, I walked her through the initial fear of loosing yourself and helped her to understand the sense of self she would need to maintain to come back. I still remember her face after she came out the first time, like, it was all worth it. I remember telling her, "You just got Avatar'd!" and pointing two gun fingers at her. It was lame. After that Dr. Max Patel joined us, he was like super engineer. We three had a lot of in depth conversations; I gave them as much as I could experience-wise. She used everything we talked about in the manual, and it helped, because the system improved with my input. We became as close as brother and sister, or okay maybe mother and son. She had maybe ten degrees, the most degrees I ever got were three, as in third degree burns. I don't drink coffee anymore.

Max was a hoot, he was just as excited but he knew the principle and technical what-have-you behind it all, a real nice guy he was. We really tested the limits of brain range with him. He was also always around when we did the studies in long term endurance, seeing just how long somebody could stay in the machine and in the tub. I have to admit we were a pretty good pair, our senses of humor meshed well it helped pass the time during the really boring experiments. Anyway, I was the tester when they showed the project to the big suits. I had to make a 'tubhead' sing. We choose _sit down you're rocking the boat_ from guys and dolls, Sammy Davis Jr. style. It got a big laugh when I did the 'and as I sank' because I got the eyes too look around as if it noticed for the first time it was in a tube. After that… cash rolled in. I remember well the day we got the grant notification, me and max high five'd. The program became more advanced and they began harvesting my DNA. Again the mental instability worried them, but by then I was _the_ senior tester. I had logged more hours then the whole team combined. Insomnia actually helped when you worked all night to perfect something.

I think Grace was the strongest advocate to keep me on… she looked past my past, and her eyes burned with the future. The first successful Avatar was created from me. That was a trip, watching it grow in the tub. Like some kind of giant blue cat elf or something. Oh god the smurf jokes. Max laughed at every single one. The first tests involved blinking as the main goal. When I winked and wiggled a finger, they were thrilled. I also vomited when I came back. Max was so thrilled we had gotten the thing to connect correctly, we high five'd again; I threw up on his tie. The next few weeks I could actually move my hands and toes, they celebrated. When I touched my finger to my nose for the first time a month later, Grace cried. When I patted the top of my head and rubbed my belly at the same time, she kissed the glass tube. By this time the military was impressed and interested, we had more funding then we knew what to do with. Things got a lot faster. No longer stuck in some warehouse, with coffins and hallways: We went to Pandora.

It took five or six years to get there, and in that time three more Avatars were made. Grace among them. When we arrived I was one of the ones who threw up. I don't care what anybody tells you, Cryosleep could use some serious improving… The first few months we got to know the world from helicopters with armed escorts and studying, endless studying. I've never read so much in all my life. But the testing… oh that was the fun part. The tubheads were gone, now, we had blue cats. They were creepy yet elegant, powerful and frightening, but beautiful too. My tubhead had grown into a being, and a ripped one at that. I was the only one who could stay connected to it for hours when we finally, finally got it out of the tube. I remember waking up on the table, and everyone in gas masks watching me in rapt attention. It felt… heavy. I lifted my arm to my mouth in all that time, and was disconnected. I never felt so exhausted. Half a month later I would learn was true exhaustion was. I could sit up now, endless motor control testes, and more, I could stand. I cracked my head against the glass when I over balanced with my tail. It took weeks for the Avatar to heal.

In that time Grace and a few others, the 'safe to try' volunteers who were hired by the company -it was much easier to get a team going when there was little risk to your brain, well… less risk.- got their own Avatars. A solid month later, everything was healed, and we were exercising in the compound together. I remember Graces first day in her new blue skin, "Hey Grace! Grace, Grace! Hey Grace!" I said.

"What, what, what? What?" She looked at me endearingly; I sang the meow mix song. She snorted. It still makes me laugh; we had races, threw balls at each other, and generally helped pick each other up. When ever I could from then on, just to annoy her, I would lick the top of my hand and rub the top of my head like a cat bath. Or leave balls of yarn on her desk. One time I jumped against the glass while she was working, with a toy mouse held by the tail with my teeth, milk came out her nose. Together we thoroughly tested the two Avatars. Sometimes they had to do surgeries to fix the problems we found, they brought in the best neurosurgeons, and it was all very scientific. But _I'll_ never forget the first time I nailed a co-worker with a water balloon, or _finally_ getting Grace to join me and everybody else in singing a showtune. When we had ourselves situated and could perform advanced acrobatics, such as running, jumping, tumbling, and climbing… we had our first test run out into Pandora itself. I'd never seen so many guns …they didn't help.

I was helping Grace collect samples when the panther monster thing attacked us. I don't remember how we got back, but I remember we lost three men and two Avatars. They were uncertain about us going out anymore, but Grace convinced them. Her goal was to meet the real deal. The blue cat people. We had to establish communication, a school, English. We lost a lot of those 'it was safer to try now' volunteers. Including our second senior tester. He was afraid of Pandora. He said he couldn't handle the memory of being torn apart, the nightmares wouldn't leave him. So it was just me and Grace again… with the grunts. Oh god were those frightening and exciting times. Myself and Grace, we made first contact. I actually remember saying we came in peace. They didn't understand a word of it, but my acting came in real handy. Pantomime, universal gestures for 'give' and 'take' and 'me and you' and 'please don't hurt me'. I was so glad I took those acting lessons, I'll never mock another mime again.

They didn't understand all of it, but at least they weren't shooting arrows at us. The blue cats among the little humans. It really made them curious. We established closer communications and slowly, so slowly were able to learn their language. They called us sky people, they called themselves the Na'vi. We were finally able to hold actual conversations, making cultural comparisons. We got on really well when I showed them how to play with a ball. Their children loved it. We established a school and taught a number of them English, the really important types and some of their young. I got to meet the chief and his son, and we made such progress. Grace was really proud and I was really happy for her. For the first time we were able to hold actually conversation in both languages! We learned so much from them and more Avatars were made. They trusted and respected Grace for her wisdom, they liked me for my sense of humor. We had laughs, many at my expense. Then… the storm came.

I'd never seen green lightening before, not this vivid. It hit us hard, like, storm of the century hard. Even Pandora's weather was deadly. It hit our systems extra bad and we lost two of the coffins. We were extremely worried it had fried everything and rebooting was a tense time, it took a solid week to repair. I was the first to go in to make sure everything worked. Everyone breathed easy when I got my Avatar to move again. I made him do the thumbs up. Afterwards, I felt tried and weak though. We did some more studies, there was so much life to look at, it was beyond our expectations; it was the best time of my life. I became an official part of the science team and began learning about how to do actually sampling to help out. After we learned the language though, the other teams started coming in. Looking into resources, looking into some metal called unobtanium -I laughed- or something equally corporately silly. It didn't matter to me, I was helping Grace fulfill her life's work. The money backers started putting more pressure on us though. Something to do with allowing more machines of some type in the area, the natives were against it, and once Grace found out what they were for, we were against it.

We could take small samples, but even taking down one tree really upset the natives. An all out fight almost broke out when a marine causally mowed down one of the smaller dog wolf monster things for sport. Things were getting a bit hostile. One night, while everyone rested, a business type came to me; he woke me and dragged me out into the hall. They had a meeting I knew nothing about and I was supposed to attend. The big suits were unhappy with my nonsupport of mining in areas, even if they were far from the Na'vi homelands. They said I wasn't acting as a true team player, and that I'd have to get with the program or there would be some serious questions about my mental capacity to continue working for them. The used my past mental problems as a threat, and this time Grace couldn't vouch for me to ease things through. It didn't matter how much work I had done for them, or that I basically helped pioneer the Avatar research. They were willing to throw me away now that the program was established. New Avatars were being made for smarter people everyday, they wouldn't need a 'mentally unstable' employee, especially if he was uncooperative. They didn't let me leave the room until I agreed to at least broach the subject with the natives.

Grace wasn't happy about it. Neither were the Na'vi. To even mention the idea revealed there were those of us come to ruin some of their sacred land, in massive amounts. Even if it was far from them. They were still enraged in fact, and I let slip that we were two different minds on the subject, corporation versus scientists. I even told them what places they were surveying. I did it to make sure they didn't blame Grace. The cooperation types were unhappy, and a military type of theirs, the chief security officer pulled us out early. He warned me if I ever mentioned anything about their plans to mine the region again, I would be convicted of leasing company secrets. Treason. Grace and I stayed up for hours that night talking. She was so scared, but we knew what had to be done, they had to be warned. We made a plan. Foolish sure, but the Na'vi had a right to know. When they let us back in… we outright told the chief there was going to be mining done in specific areas in the Na'vi language.

The Na'vi were infuriated! They threatened and a large crowd gathered. The marines were frightened. Someone fired. All hell broke loose. Grace and I were running, some marines went down. They began firing at everything, anything blue… I felt the bullet hit me in the leg. I panicked, the copter laid down suppressing fire, I thought they were firing at me. I turned and ran to the jungle, something heavy fell on my back. I went limp, but not from the weight. The chief of security had pulled us out early again, but this time lifting the coffin lid and physically pulling us out. I should probably mention this had never been done before, no one was stupid enough to sever a synaptic linkup by force, there weren't even locks on the coffins. No one expected this, no one had tested this, no one had foreseen this callousness… so… when he lifted mine, something went wrong. He pulled me up by the collar, but my body refused to respond. All the machines went haywire, Grace was angry, then shocked and then furious. All of my brain signals were flatline. I… was dead.

But somehow I was still aware of what happened around me, only I wasn't in my body… I was… well, I guess I was in the machine. When my Avatar's collapsed, all I remembered was darkness. I kept seeing flashes of Pandora jungle, marines shooting guns, Grace's unconscious body being dragged, and blue hands all over me. I felt… a sudden horrible, horrible pain, and then I was running. My head hurt, my mind raced, I was having an episode worse then any I ever did in my youth. And then. I was no longer with the machine. I was in the Avatar. Running, _I_ was running, I screamed and cried, and mourned my body. I tried to wake up. I tried so many times, hurting myself more and more to shock myself awake. It caught the attention of animals, eyes glowing in the lights, and I was running for my life. They bit, they clawed, I bled and bit back. I tasted blood, my own and others. A drop, more animals, more blue bodies… I ran, all night, somehow. In blind fear, panic, and on instinct. As if I was tapping into some ancient part of the Avatar brain we hadn't discovered yet, but duplicated with the machines, it was all I could do… run. Run. Run!

I was running, moving, feeling nothing. My feet numbed, I dove, I rolled, I fell, I ran, how far? How far… … I climbed one of their sacred willow trees without knowing it, some instinct told me to curl up, lay still and breathe so shallowly. Like… like a kind voice. The pink light whips covered me, curled around me like a womb and the animals and blue people and marines and pain and fear passed me by. I stayed there I don't know how long… and I started hearing voices. I, I don't, never remembered much about the time I actually went what they coldly call, clinically insane. It was a void place, where emotions had an echo, where you felt distant as if out in space. But now, here, that space was full of voices… presences, warm and comforting. My vision seemed to split, Grace was shaking me, begging me, but someone else was behind me. Soft hands upon my back. Pulling me. A lullaby, singing me to sleep; hands holding me close, letting me cry and scream like a lost child. It was like being in my mother's arms. I slept and dreamed of things I have never dreamt before. That was when my life truly began …and everything else… was lost.


	2. Chapter 2: The Hunter

**Chapter II: The Hunter**

When I woke up, it was to pain. The soft wind in the branches, the sun on my skin, and the feeling of tight licks of cuts just healing over. My body was curled in the fetal position, I felt these soft lashes all around me, and I looked up. A thousand lines, pulling up into the sky and a gigantic blue world on the horizon. That was when I felt a sudden surge of fear. I jumped up, instantly regretting it for even more pain. The branches slid from around me as I moved, I was panicking again. Where was I? What had happened? Why was I there? I then noted that some of my wounds had reopened, there would definitely be some scars… if I didn't bleed to death first. But how had I got them? I didn't remember how I got these wounds, nor remembered how I got where I was. I stood carefully, not recognizing any of the surrounding greenery. Vast isn't the word for it. It was about as vast as a park was vast back at home, this wasn't any kind of vast, this was _unending_. Then it hit me. I wasn't sure where home was either. In fact I didn't remember a lot of things, like… my name.

I began to hyper ventilate and clutched my head, it hurt to do so. I didn't know what I was going to do but my immediate needs had to be filled. I was going to bleed to death. I tore up my already torn clothing and did my best. I didn't know much about medicine, but had memories of bandaging wounds in games. I remembered something about playing a lot of games… what were games? Were they other lives? I knew to at least bandage bleeding with pressure. My feet and ankles were sore and I noticed my boots were ruined. Boots. I remembered clothing. It looked like a blender had gotten hold of one and the other was missing its sole. What was a blender? I vaguely remembered kicking something with a lot of teeth. Was that in one of those games?

My toes were all still there so I used my boot strings to support the bandages. I was barefoot, naked but for pants, I remember pants, but I had staved off bleeding out. It was only after I had done this that I realized my face actually hurt. Touching it revealed dried blood there too. It also made me wince as fresh reminders of livid cuts throbbed. My face must have been a mess. I then tried to figure how to get down. I don't know how I managed to get up the tree, but I had no idea how to get down. I was at the very tip top of the thing several hundred feet off the ground! I was perched on the edge trying to spot a better foot hold when the shadow fell over me. _Oh god!_

Danger, but why? What! My brain knew enough to at least try and dive when gigantic claws dug into my legs. A horrid screech made my head rattle and I was suddenly born aloft, my torn pants caught on whatever it was that was carrying me with hooked talons. It wasn't an eagle. What was an eagle? I was thrown about, the claws trying to get a better grip, we were so high… I kicked and screamed and punched and bit! Anything to avoid those claws and it then dipped its head. Massive jaws tried to get a hold of me, I braced my arms against the sail that split its head. Then my pants gave out. I fell into an eternity of green. My body was going numb and then something else was falling after me, something smaller with something blue on top of it. I jerked to a hard stop reaching and flailing out at anything I could. I felt a body, and then we were weaving. I was on the back of an animal that was somehow familiar yet also alien. Then the shadow was over us again.

Trees the size of buildings flew by, what were buildings? Vines tried to snare us, leaves struck my face, the huge horror stayed right behind us. We were fleeing for our lives and I couldn't even think. I held on and tried not to fall off, clutching to whomever saved me. I looked back and saw those great teeth rasping for me, I shut my eyes and didn't look again. The world moved around me, sounds of limbs breaking, trees cracking, the flap of wings and its terrible roars. Suddenly we were in total darkness and coming to a jolting stop, I though for sure it had swallowed us whole. I felt my savior's hands pushing my own away, pulling me onto flat ground. I felt rocks beneath my feet so I let go and opened my eyes, the creature was snapping at us. I screamed and dove into the darkness of the small cave, followed by the rider and its animal. We moved far back from the mouth opening and it tried to calm its animal down as the greater terrordactyl thing tried to get at us.

I again curled into a ball and hugged my head, covering my ears so I wouldn't have to hear it. My tail curled around my shredded legs. It continued snapping, clawing and roaring at us, it would have deafened me had I not held my ears closed so hard. Eventually though, it gave up, and the thrashing of wind and the sounds went away. I whimpered in the corner, rocking myself. My heartbeat was hammering through my body, downing out the sudden silence in its wake. I couldn't stop the bleeding now, no more clothing, why did I know clothing? Who was I? Why was this happening? Why did I have to… die. The gentle hands on my back came unexpectedly and I again screamed and tried to shrink into a smaller ball. My ears caught comforting words, an odd sound which again was familiar but also not. The voice whispered, a female voice, and a name came to me. Grace? Who was Grace? Maybe this was Grace?

I stopped flailing and whimpering, said the word, a question, but it came out wrong. Not like the words she used. Then I felt myself begin to go still again, my tongue was numb, shock was trying to take me. She was there though, in my face, speaking calmly and soothingly telling me everything was alright now. I was safe, it was gone. I didn't respond, just looked at her. She was beautiful in an odd way, exotic, yet familiar. Elegant, deadly, beautiful… that was familiar… I latched onto the familiarity, but couldn't think of anything else to say. She gingerly touched me, moving my disheveled hair, checking one long braid. It was important somehow, my brain told me through the fog, but I didn't know how. …there were cuts and dried blood on it too. She frowned, speaking to me softly as she held it, like some kind of sacred object. She looked at me so pitiably, and asked me something. My brain took a moment to process the language, but when she asked the second time I understood.

"What is your name?" She said, I moved my lips, having trouble somehow trying to answer her in the langue I knew… like, I knew two, no, I did know two. That was the problem, I knew two languages, one was the right one, the other… chaos and memories, a word… insanity? Was that the other language? I was getting things mixed up, so I calmed myself as best I could and shook my head, rocking myself. She looked at me sadly, again gently handling my pony tail. Why was she looking at it so terribly sad? She spoke again, "Try to remember. What is your name?" And there was a blank wall, a block of nothingness with whispered voices. Insanity? Why did I fear that word? Finally I said;

"I don't..." And she sighed. Then she took note of my other wounds, bleeding again now, and looked afraid. She did something, wrapping, tieing, painful, tourniquets? She used some of her own clothing, and parts from her saddle, leaves, it didn't hurt anymore… I didn't care that it was a bad sign I wasn't feeling pain.

She pulled me gently, telling me, "We must go now, you must be healed." She tried to move me but I flinched.

"W-Who?" I asked her.

"I am Kn'indy, we must go, now." She pulled me forward, calming her Banshee, I somehow knew it was called, and pulled me to hold onto her. Then we were flying again. The feeling of holding her close was wonderful, almost enough to make me forget the terrible pain and fear. We didn't see anymore shadows. We flew hard for a long time and I think I could hear the sea, I did not mind dieing like this… holding her, soaring… by this time the deep gashes on my legs had bled far too much. I was out before we even landed. I had a nightmare about rending jaws falling from the sky and startled awake to a warm odd water taste being poured in my mouth. I was heavily bandaged in thick leaves. I sputtered and tried to move, would I ever learn? The pain froze me and several people around me moved to make sure I didn't open any more wounds. I felt weak and pained, but Kn'indy was there, so I felt safe. I reached out to her and heard myself say, "Gone?" And she replied

"Yes, rest, now." And I lay back. An elder person to my side was carefully applying some kind of balm to my pony tail, saying low words about someone named Eywa. That was important too but I couldn't remember why. Maybe my name was Eywa? What was the strange fascination with my pony tail for? She rubbed gently and I felt a strange sensation, especially when her fingers glided over the cut parts. My whole body twitched and colors turned a bit off. I closed my eyes to let whatever it was pass and again dreamed of things I had never seen. …grace…?

…

A week followed, fevered nightmare delusions, screaming awake at different times of the day. Sometime Kn'indy was there, sometimes she was not. I kept expecting to see Grace, but I didn't know who she was or what she even looked like, just that she was not there. Sometimes the last shadow tore me apart, others the wolves, and still more strange tailless creatures with deadly thunder bows; screaming, crying, fighting to live always I woke up with the urge to fight. Something told me to keep fighting, just like back then when I lost it all and had to fight my way back to sanity. Sanity? What was that? When was that? Who were my mother and father? Was Grace my mother? Or was it Eywa? The fever broke during the night and the nightmares like a pounding drum in my temples ceased. That next morning I woke up to find Kn'indy there. I said something to her, but it wasn't right again, a mix with that odd language. She came forward and asked me, "How do you feel?"

I told her, "I feel twice." Though I didn't know what that meant. The elders came back in and helped me sit up, they looked over everything and took the most care looking over my braid again. They whispered about it and finally I had to ask. "What is wrong, to me?" They looked from one to another and then very solemnly said: "You are Tsaheylu Mun'i." I didn't know the last two words, for some reason. I showed my puzzlement and this only saddened them more. She held out her own braid gently, and then motioned back to my braid where the many bandages were… my braid… was much shorter than hers.

She repeated slowly I was, "Tsaheylu Mun'i" I shook my head sadly. "I don't." To which there was general pitying looks, and more so, Kn'indy covered her mouth. They slowly tried to explain to me, but I couldn't understand them, I finally had to say "I don't, your words." Only then did they stop, becoming solemn. They spoke to each other that it was worse then they feared, I was like a child again, forgotten much of what my people had taught me. So began my reeducation. The teacher came to me personally the first few days because I still could not move freely on my own. My legs were badly hurt and my body was extremely weak, obviously from being injured to the brink of death. My teachers referred to me as "'eveng" or child, they didn't mean it cruelly in fact they said it kindly, it was just they didn't want to name me if I somehow remembered my name. The elders respectfully referred to me as "Kea Peyral", no name. So I was slowly re-taught the ways I had forgotten.

It was humbling, because I started to realize just how much I had lost. They had to teach me words for everyday things, things I should have known in my sleep. I tried to forget the Insanity, but it was always there… always confusing me with things that never were. Physically, my injures had laid me far lower then even the oldest in the clan. Everyone, all the people gave me sympathetic looks… pitying looks. I was afraid. I don't know how my body survived; when they removed the bandages, when they sewed my flesh… I don't know how my body survived. It took so many days to relearn my own language and learn to move again in a passable way. By then I was finally able to move and to understand what Tsaheylu Mun'I meant, as I had noticed, and noticed again and again… my braid was shorter then everyone else's. I was bond cut. The sacred bond had been damaged, severed somehow in a terrible fight and it had damaged my mind. I was devastated when I finally figured it out, and Kn'indy touched my shoulder sadly.

She tried to cheer me up though, "You are learning and moving more and more everyday, soon you will be one of the people again."

"How! I am so much slower, in all ways, than my brothers and sisters! How could I have been hurt so badly?" I closed my eyes against tears, "What if I fail the people, and can not be strong enough?"

She gripped me, "Do not think such things, you were strong to survive, and even stronger to recover as much as you have…" I looked at her then, "…and besides, you are slower because you get distracted too easily. Too busy looking at sister's body, like you've not seen before."

I lowered my ears, feeling ashamed and blushed. "Ahp." She smiled at me gently, "I can not help you are beautiful." She laughed at that, and then I had to laugh too.

Patting me she said, "You will know our ways again, Eywa will provide."

And that was the only time I ever expressed my doubt. From then on I worked hard to learn everything I had forgotten. Many moons and suns later and I was able to truly move, to run, and many more I was able to go hunting with them, and learn about the outside world. I was stuck with a bunch of children who knew more then me, but they helped me learn and respected me for surviving a fight with the last shadow, they talked about me as the scarred one. The first time I got to see a clear pool of water I knew why.

While most of my people's distracting bodies have dark stripes, I was crossed and zigzagged with light blue lines. A map painted with pain. My legs were large white jagged lines, my forearms too, all the way up to my fingers where I had nearly lost my fourth. My torso was traced and retraced with curling paths like lightning, even my face was criss-crossed by a large 'z' from the top of my left eyebrow, down under my right eye, back up across my nose to under my left eye, and down again across my lips. Another upside down crescent moon on the right near my chin, a long horizontal line from the corner of my left eye to my ear, another one at the corner of my right eye going straight up and down, and finally a very slight one on my bottom lip at the cleft, dead center, running down my chin. They said it looked like war markings.

How I had acquired the wounds I didn't remember, but I had to live with the reminders for the rest of my days. But live I eventually did. The children were fascinated with me, and wanted to hear the story of my survival again and again. Each time I had to retell it I found myself adding in elements or details I only vaguely recalled, but acting them with ease and ability. I seemed to have the remnants of a great story teller in me, something the tribe respected me for even more. I was inventive, bright, and eager to relearn what I had forgotten, devoted to our mother and to the spirit of the world around us. Each day I grew stronger and stronger, faster and faster, but there were some things that would… could not heal.

Every now and again, especially if I failed at something the others could do easily, I would loose control of my anger, nearly breaking my bow in half, and then the next minute my hands would shake, tears would fall, and suddenly I couldn't remember where I was, hissing and pushing away the others who I didn't recognize. I'd even try to run from them and then stop, fall heavily and then ask them what had happened. They called them storms. These storms passed quickly, but the intensity of them was unpredictable, even I didn't know when or where they would suddenly strike. The insanity was a constant cloud, hovering on the horizon, waiting to break. Once someone stepped on my tail and I crushed my bowl with my bare hands and didn't know why I did it. I was just as shocked as everyone around me, even as they moved to stop my hands bleeding. It was frightening, and some of my people kept their distance from me. Not Kn'indy though. She said I would simply have to learn to harness these storms, to use the natural forces in my body.

So, when ever my anger would flash I would drop to the ground and do exercises, or if the rains of sadness came I would break out into song. When the worst came and I was lost in the heavy clouds and fog, I tried to hold myself still and remember at least one thing: stay. With this the storms lessened and everyone became use to them as I did. The insanity renamed; my storms; of voices, feelings, images. I began to control this storm, and it became less frightening. No one blamed me these troubles, though they held me responsible in so far as I tried to deal with them without hurting myself or others, but they understood there was a wildness in me Eywa had made. Like the animals of the forests, a beast that was myself that I had to make a bond with and control before it destroyed me. They respected me even more in fact, for over coming it so creatively. The constant and sudden exercise actually improved me, bringing me closer to the standard everyone else lived by. I became a very good singer.

The songs I came up with were completely new to them as well, I told them I heard them upon the winds of my storms. I had considered controlling and forgetting about the other language in my mind, the other voice and the dreams of the things I had never seen, I was damaged after all, bond cut. But the elders said, like all storms, they were sent by Eywa. That I had my own was a gift I should not put aside, perhaps there was a purpose in seeing and knowing these strange sounds and images. So, life went on, the child, scarred one with no name, grew to be as strong in the tribe as any of the others. An excellent fisherman, a great story teller, singer and one who tells jokes. Once Kn'indy was showing me how to read sign when someone ran by stepping where we crouched, I shook my fist at him and shouted "YOU SCOUUNDdreeelll?" Not knowing what it was I turned the word into or why it rolled off my tongue like that. Or why I shook my fist. It made Kn'indy laugh though.

I improved our way of life too. For some reasons, I could figure out the pattern of things, like how a net should be woven to further ensnare struggling fish, catching more of them. The elders said it was a part of the storm in me, flashes of anger but also laughter that was thunderous, and inspiration as a rainbow after the rains. Eywa had blessed me, but with all blessings there was another side, as the hunter was swift with the bow, she would have to take another's life and as the weaver was delicate with his craft, he would spend much of his time to work his threads. So in me there was now an explanation and purpose. I helped them build traps for some of the faster creatures, and experimented with cooking and preparation they had never thought of, just slightly, I increased my people's quality of life. Even if I was bond cut, no longer did eyes look at me with pity, but now, an understanding, respect, and sometimes admiration.

I was invited to meetings about how to deal with various problems, such as a pack of Nantang that were sometimes raiding our fishing nets, or an injured Palulukan that had been spotted to close to our lands, or recapturing a Pa'li for our riders. However, one of the problems I had the most trouble with was dealing with Ikran. It wasn't that they shied away from me, for some reason they liked me. Other rider's Ikran would actually follow me and nudge me for attention if I was near, as they did for no one else. It was funny for a while, but eventually it was apparent I should really get my own. "Get your own!" became a common joke. Of course, I hadn't even tried bonding, not even with a Pa'li yet. There was great fear you see, because no one knew if my storm would affect them… or if I could even make the bond at all. My braid only reached under the blades of my shoulders, my bond braid lost among the other braids. My body grew strong, stronger then many in the village, but my braid never grew longer. It was impractical for me to try to bond, for I would need to lie close to the animal so it would not pull. Still, my people always could use a strong hunter…

I worked as hard as I could to make myself useful to them. I did not know what tribe I originally belonged to, I did not even know my own name but the people of the eastern sea had saved me, and had re-taught me my ways. They had given me my life back, and I had to repay them. So I worked hard. Harder then any in the village had reason too. I did things… strange movements, like a child at play, that they did not need to. I repeated these motions to make me stronger, to make me faster, and I did not sleep as long as the others. Sometimes, even during the night, I woke… unable to sleep… the storm drums pounding in my heart. I would rise and sneak through the huts and tents, and run in the night. I would dodge the packs and climb high, higher then any. So often did I run into the night, the guards gave no thought to my comings and goings. It was odd, but so was I. I would return quietly, and they would let me pass, sometimes… sometimes Kn'indy would be awake, watching me as I lay back down. She would not speak though, and I fell asleep easily.

So it continued in this way, and I became stronger then any of my people needed to be. My strength helped my people, where I could not bond, I tried to help with my own strength and I became contented. I was no closer to remembering my name, but I at least could now contribute as much as other people… though not as much as those who could use the bond. Kn'indy, ever watching over me, one day convinced me to bond. At least to try with Pa'li. They bumped me, nuzzling me for attention as all our animals did. I climbed atop, took hold of her, and held forward my own braid… it was so small, the pink braids barely returned. They waved slowly, hypnotically. What would happen? What if my storms harmed them? Or worse… what if nothing happened at all? I took a deep breath, and made the bond. My body fell forward, I saw flashes of color and light, my vision shifting up and down, forward, and Pa'li was staggering under me. I felt a hand hitting me on the face, someone calling for me, opening my eyes I saw Kn'indy. I was looking up at her from the ground. She was so relieved to see me look at her, I smiled at her, but then found myself crying. She frowned, and held me.

I didn't know why I was doing it, and I couldn't bring myself to sing. Still, Pa'li came over to us and bowed her head to me, and I could not help but smile. Kn'indy told me after, that Pa'li had nearly fallen and I slipped from her back, but she was not afraid of me. But… I told Kn'indy I would not try again, I could not, I did not feel her… I felt myself slipping away… and she did not try to make me go further. A great sorrow took me, and I was quiet though I still worked hard. I did not sing so much, and I could not bring myself to tell more stories. Again, the eyes in part pitied… and Kn'indy grew sad for me. Then Palulukan began hunting our people. The injured one, he was clever, ambushing our hunters as they fired. Taking and running before the others could shoot, tearing our nets, and hiding if we tried to chase him. We lost three hunters to his hunger and parties were sent out after him in greater number. I was among the hunters' who protected the children as they learned; we were only helping with the nets when Palulukan was upon us.

We did not hear him, did not see him, why would he dare be so bold as to attack us so close to our home? We were unprepared, he fell upon one warrior and the rest of us instructed the children to dive into the sea. The fall was high, the waves hard, but Palulukan was desperate. He ignored our hunters and went for the children, I and another threw the fishing net we were to mend upon him! He tore at the net and went for the other, but I leapt upon his back. He threw the other hunter down and I pulled hard upon the nets to lock his jaws. He must have slipped on the sea wetted rocks, because he rolled with me upon him and entangled himself further in our nets. But he still had arms free and so knowing he was in danger fled back up the slope to our village, blind in panic and fury, when he rolled I was caught in the nets with him and could not get free. He bit and chewed at the mesh and in his rage thrashed us both through the huts, my people had already fired upon him with our arrows, some striking, some not, but the pain only drove him mad.

He threw himself into our hunters and any within his reach, some could not fire because I could not get clear. Kn'indy was among the hunters and I saw her fear for me, Palulukan went for her, and I reacted with instinct alone. I grabbed the left whip of his head and forced my short braid onto him… I attempted the bond in desperation. The moment we connected… Palulukan and I fell limp. He flew forward slamming into the ground, I felt, pain… fear… a hunger I could never quench, and more pain. Stabbing pains, and the pains of my heart, but _my_ eyes were not open. Instead, I looked upon Kn'indy with greater eyes, and reached for her with great claws. As my heartbeat faded I realized whose eyes I looked through, and felt myself die. …the hunters freed my body after Palulukan fell, and feared I was dead. Kn'indy called for me, it sounded as she was always calling for me. I lifted my eyes, and spoke. "I was Palulukan..."

She looked at me strangely. The elders thanked me for my help in defeating Palulukan, but did not know what to say when I told them the bond _made_ me Palulukan. They were frightened, but also in awe, if what I said was true Eywa had a greater purpose for me then I had ever guessed. I did not deem to call myself Palulukan Makto, it was more an act of desperation… none had thought to use the bond as a weapon to stun one's enemy… and this act itself while intentioned to save lives, was looked upon as… unnatural. That night had found me afraid to sleep, the feeling of dieing still too close… I could not rest, and sat away from the tents and shallow caves.

"You can not sleep?" Kn'indy's voice from behind me, I shook my head.

"The nightmares come, and I can not rest…"

"Txan'Tompa comes again, you are still learning about your new place." I turned to her, watching her slowly come up and sit beside me. "The great rains." she filled in for me.

I sighed and looked out at the forest of lights, "What if my place is not among the people? What if I am not meant to have lived and it is Eywa who has cursed me?" I said softly.

Kn'indy's beaded braids clinked together as she turned her head quickly, "The great mother does not hate any of her children." she gasped.

I could not stop myself, "What if I am not one of her children?" For some reason Kn'indy did not answer right away, instead she watched me for many long moments. Then, slowly, softly, she reached out and took my face with both hands. Turning me to look at her as she gently ran her fingers down the scars along my face, her fingers continued down my neck and shoulders, to my chest, legs, and finally my tail. Then she let go and took my face again. I watched her do all of this stunned.

"You will always have a place in this world, the flow of energy passes through you as it does for everyone else, no matter what you may look like on the outside, within, you have been made for us." She leaned forward, pressing her forehead against mine, looking deep within my eyes and… me. "You are here, still, with me. As I am here, with you."

I felt my tail go completely straight and knew my face looked dumbstruck, "But Kn'indy, I am not one of the people, I can not choose…"

She put her fingers to my lips, "You do not know what you came from, you are in darkness, but you know what you have now and that is enough to know who you are now, in this Eywa gives you light… and she gives you me."

I took both of her hands, fearfully almost, "How can you say this?"

She smiled, "Because I saw you as you fought Toruk to live and as you healed your mind from the cutting of the bond, I saw you rise each day when I knew myself I could not in your place, I watched as you felt great fear but still took each change and challenge with all your strength; I watched you as you laughed with us, lived with us, and would have died with us… when you fought with Palulukan, I realized I feared for you. I feared for you more then I feared for anyone else, but not because I saw you were weak, but because I have watched your journey back from the dark to one of the greatest warriors among our people. Even when I saw your bond become so strong you truly became one with Pa'li and Palulukan, I still could not and can not think of my life without watching you…" She smiled so softly. "I see you."

I could not think, only look into her golden eyes and become lost in them. I whispered, "What if my bond hurts you?"

She whispered back, "It won't."

And I could hold back no more, I took her face in my hands as well, and my whisper was as strong as the winds in a great rain. "I see you." and we kissed. The sentries watched us from afar but did not interfere, they only spoke in hushed tones to each other, and some, smiled knowingly.


	3. Chapter 3: The Sky Person

**Chapter III: The Sky Person**

Nine days later; our scouts told us the sky people we had been warned about were coming closer to our lands. We rode out to watch them and I was among those who wanted to go, I flew with Kn'indy upon her Ikran, Ean'Taw. When we got close enough, everyone landed to run the rest of the distance. The others had trouble keeping my pace and it was always given then I was usually ahead of them, so I was the first to see the sky people. They were strange, small things with misshapen bodies and odd colored skin. They carried many things with them and moved carelessly, a child could have heard them coming… yet there was something familiar about them. Something within my storms spoke to me. Softly the others caught up to me and crawled along their bellies to my side. I pointed, and then motioned to where I saw the others spreading out. Kn'indy came up behind me and pulled me off to circle around behind them, she wanted to show me something. Together we made our way silently around the sky people crashing around like Angtsìk. Then we saw something amazing, a creature the sky people rode within.

It was the size of an Ikran, but a dull grey and shaped very strangely, it had fixed wings which spun like the forest lizards. For some reason it too was familiar in a way. The sky people were doing something with a small pack, and then looking through a tube standing on three sticks. They looked very frightened and hurried underneath their clear masks, they'd lean close to one another and mutter. My ears pricked as I caught a word, and understood it. A bolt came from the clouds, clarity of the blue sky, a word from my storms! My eyes widened and I felt the irresistible urge to get closer, to hear more of what they spoke, to let my ears hear these strange and familiar words; the clouds drew close. Kn'indy followed without question. We slid and wound our way closer still, and I could just barely make out another word:

"…mine…" I had to get closer my mind working feverishly, words sometimes appeared in my head, their meaning, what was the meaning of it all? "…around here at night…" I heard more and now was becoming careless in my rush to get closer. Kn'indy hissed at me in warning and only that halted me completely. She came up beside me, now within several feet of the standing sky people.

"What are you doing?" She whispered.

"Their words…" I said absently, she waited for me to continue wanting to hear my reasoning. "I think I know them." I said quietly. Kn'indy furrowed her brow but said nothing more, it was then the sky people turned and walked away from us.

"Are you certain?" She said gently.

"I must hear more." I said firmly and despite the warning and fear in my heart I crawled closer still. Leaving the jungle foliage, I slid through the grass barely up to my knee yet up to the sky people's waist. I did my best to make certain the grass did not sway and give away my presence and inched my way closer and closer still. Was this why Eywa had given me these storms? To know of the sky people? Where these storms of the sky people! The two sky people holding the objects and speaking over them in hushed tones paused and I froze. One turned back motioning to trees;

"-and initially I think we could do with a double guard…" Their words! I knew them! He took a few steps forward. "But I don't know how we're going to clear the west bank, our reports say it's too close to where some of their scouts have been seen." He was now only three feet from me, if he looked down… he took another step. "Quaritch isn't going to-" I was amazed it had taken him so long, I could literally have reached out and grabbed him, now he was standing directly over me and only now did his eyes lock onto mine. I was foolish to have come so close, but now I was certain; the words floating in my head, the voices on the edge of the wind, they were all from the sky people. The sky people were in my storms. He stared at me for several moments, shocked I was so close to him, and then he stepped backwards and screamed: "JESUS CHRIST!" Immediately there was a great rush of noises, the ones with the deadly short bows came running as the two before me tried to back away to the safety of the grey bird. "Contact! Contact! Mother of God contact!" He shouted nearly falling backwards.

Behind me I heard my people take surrounding positions and draw arrows, I held out a single hand to still them. They whispered to each other, but I didn't hear them draw taunt the strings. The person holding the three legged tube steadied the other, and shouted to the sky people running up to us. "Hold your fire, hold your fire for god's sakes!" I narrowed my eyes and slowly rose from the grass so they could all see me, and that my bow was not drawn. "Eric, calm down, if they wanted us dead we would be dead already." The one holding the... scope, was the word, said. "Who knows Na'vi? Where, where's Jane? Somebody get Jane up here!" One of the ones holding a stick was cursing while inching himself closer to me, they all had their shortbows… no, guns, they were called guns… guns pointed at me.

"Shit, shit, Jane went with Alexander's team!" The other said shuffling through some kind of papers.

"God damn it…" He said coldly, "Okay, make no sudden moves, get Dr. Augustine on the line." One of the men with guns, slowly drew away, moving to the… the plane… and he reached inside it. He asked for this Dr. Augustine 'asap' as they had contacted 'far range natives' and didn't have a translator. There was an urgency in their voices, and they were slick with sweat. They were greatly afraid, so I made no move to frighten them, but until I could figure out what they were doing here I said nothing further. The words they used, 'mine' and 'clear the west bank' they filled me with a sense of rage and fear, but I did not know why. Suddenly a far voice came out of the plane,

"Frank, calm down, what's going on?" That voice… I knew that voice.

The one named Frank kept his eyes on me as he spoke. "Doc, we are in some serious shit here, one of the natives just _appeared_ out of the grass three feet from us, he's a mean looking son of a bitch covered in scars and twice as big around, I've never seen one of their warriors like him."

I spoke then, my throat was not use to the words from so long, so it came out hesitantly. "I… not mean."

I heard the surprise from my people behind me, but the shock on the sky people was greater still. "…doc, he just spoke English…" One of the gun holders nearly dropped his.

"Holy shit…" The voice came again, "Alright Frank, listen to me very closely… as politely as you can, ask them to stay there, Say this-" she then related our language slowly, enunciating so Frank could repeat it.

Frank hesitantly looked to me and repeated what she said brokenly, "Great and mighty warrior- of the people, I ask that you- do me the honor of- waiting, one of my people is coming who knows- you're language, she will- be here soon."

When he finished I spoke again. "O.. kay." I nodded.

The sky people were less shocked this time. "He says Okay doc… please hurry." And with that the voice did not come again and Frank sat in the plane looking at me.

The other person in the white coat, motioned to the others with guns, "Guns, down, at ease." He said carefully. Hesitantly, some more then others, all of them lowered their weapons. It was then Kn'indy slowly came out behind me. The ones with guns moved as if to raise them again, but checked themselves.

She came up to my side, keeping her eyes on the sky people but when she was next to me she whispered, "How."

I turned my head only slightly, "Their words are in my storms, but I do not know why." She reached her hand out and touched me, asking me to be careful with the simple gesture. I returned it. Together we waited a while, with each of the sky people becoming more nervous with each moment. Only the one in the white coat seemed to wish to say anything more.

"…How did, I mean… do you, understand me?" He finally said.

I looked at him and searched for the word. "Sometimes."

He looked paler, and glanced at one of the men with guns. "How long have you listened?" he said quietly, fearfully.

I searched again. It was hard, hearing the words I knew what they meant easily, but when I tried to use my own there was a black wall; shifting the clouds, blindly in the fog, I had to push against it many times to find the correct meaning. "Long." I said finally, still searching. This seemed to make them even further uncomfortable.

Kn'indy looked to me, "What do they say?"

To which I repeated everything we had spoken of. During this we heard the other plane coming in. Kn'indy showed no fear as it came in unnaturally, stopped, and then tried to land. There was one of the people inside of it. She leaped out of the plane before it landed and strode purposefully over to us. She was one of us, but she dressed and moved like one of them, and she had five fingers. She took one look at both of us and had to work hard to suppress her surprise and alarm, when she spoke my heart quickened.

"Greetings noble warriors, I am-"

"Grace?" I heard myself say.

She froze then, her tail going ridged, "Great one, do you know me?" she said carefully.

I looked at Kn'indy confused, she looked at me expectantly. I put my hand to my forehead, "A black storm stops my hunt for the words and voices, but I feel as If I have heard your voice upon the wind… a name, a warm feeling… but I do not know more." Grace looked troubled, and sky people around her looked even more worried, unsure of what was happening or being said.

"Warrior, what is your name?" She said then.

I shook my head, "I do not know, I lost much of myself." She narrowed her eyes, looking confused, so I showed her my braid. She gasped and the gun people stiffened, Kn'indy took my arm reassuringly.

"Doctor, what's happening?" The white coated one spoke, Grace silenced him.

"Do you remember anything about where you were born?" She said in a strongly hopeful voice. I shook my head. Grace looked me up and down.

"Why are you here?" Kn'indy said finally.

Grace looked to her, "My name is Grace, mighty hunter, and we come here in peace."

I looked to the white coated one, then back to Grace, "What does 'mine' and 'clear the west bank' mean?" I asked about the familiar yet meaningless words which called to me for some unknown reason.

Grace's eyes bulged, "Oh shit." The sky people around her tensed further, as I mentioned the 'English' words. She turned her head to the white coat sternly, "You stupid son of…" Then she turned back to us. "Warriors, these people come only to look, they are scouts for my people, they speak of things they wish to do, but _will not_." She said firmly to us and to them. "Will you let them leave so we may talk unbothered?" I looked to Kn'indy, who looked to me. Behind me I heard the bow strings of many, relax.

Kn'indy nodded, "We will speak with you, Grace of the sky people."

Grace sighed and turned to the white coated men. "Get the hell out of here." She said tersely. Just like that the sky people with their guns, and the white coats with their scopes all gathered together as the plane rose and left us. The second plane had since powered down at a motion from Grace, and the ones on board with guns did not come any closer. Grace herself looked at us like one would a great puzzle. "You are the Ikran people of the Eastern Sea?" she asked us.

"We are." Kn'indy said for both of us immediately.

Grace narrowed her brow, "How is it you know our words?" She asked me.

I frowned, "Eywa has given me storms, which hold much of the sky people. Visions, smells, sounds, voices. Your words and these things you use, they are within these storms." And then my eyes truly widened, for I understood. "Eywa has given me these storms, so I may know the sky people for _my_ people!" I turned to Kn'indy, "She had blessed me so our people will be ready, she had blessed me so I may find the sky people and they find us!" Kn'indy half smiled at my excitement, but Grace looked worried. Behind us, the others revealed themselves, looking at each other with concern.

Kn'indy turned to Grace, "Is it the same for you? You know of the sky people, yet you are of the people. How has this come to be?" she asked.

Grace still stared at me when she spoke, "Great ones, I… am not of your people. I am, it is hard to explain. I am of the sky people who walks in the body of your people." Each of us gasped in surprise. What did she mean? We looked to each other, confusion, and some showed fear.

I turned back to her, "How is it you have done this?"

She looked at both of us, Kn'indy held my hand closely, finally Grace smiled tightly. "I will show you." She held out her hand and motioned to the plane.

Kn'indy looked at me worriedly, I looked to her, "This is why we came here isn't it? I finally feel like I know why I have these storms, I feel this is my place." Kn'indy looked to Grace, then back to her people.

She held my hand, and finally she placed her hand to my chest. "I am happy, but I know we must tell our people of this first. This is not for us to decide." I frowned slightly, looked to Grace and back to her. For the longest time I stood between the two peoples, two paths, both within the storm. All of the answers seemed within my grasp, all the things I feared, doubted, and wondered about, it was all before me, I was so eager… Finally I looked to Kn'indy, and nodded. Grace looked to me sadly, having heard us. "Can you meet us here in three days time?" Kn'indy asked.

Grace nodded still watching me strangely, "As you say, please think of it carefully, we have so much to learn from one another."

I smiled to her, "I look forward to learning of your people, Grace." We separated after and went back to our peoples. As I left her standing there, the strange plane behind her with its other peoples, its other world… I could not help feeling a strange longing. I was leaving the 'Grace' I had been looking for, she was important somehow, but I did not know why. I watched her as she stared at me, her eyes looked to me… so strangely, so sadly, so… familiarly.

…

As she watched the party leave Dr. Augustine felt her heart sinking. The big one, more muscled then most Na'vi and covered in more scars then she had ever seen. His voice was undeniably familiar. The things he said, the way he spoke, and the way he carried himself… it was all different, and she could not recognize his face under the scaring very well, but his voice… but it was impossible wasn't it? It was a whole year ago when she and max lost him. How could he be alive in his Avatar? How could he have survived? It didn't make any sense. Grace turned moving back to the scorpion; Trudy was sitting in the pit, her eyebrows raised well above her glasses. "Doc, tell me I'm seeing things." Grace didn't reply, instead getting into the airship and calmly buckling herself in. It was impossible wasn't it? It was a full year ago Quaritch had pulled them out of the link chambers, a full year ago her dear friend did not respond, a full year ago they buried his ashes.


	4. Chapter 4: The Storm Rider

**Chapter IV: The Storm Rider**

"And you just let him go?" Quaritch looked at her like she was a sick dog he'd love to put down. Everyone was in the main command center, standing around the circular holographic display which showed them sections of Pandoran jungle.

Grace rubbed her temples, "We don't even know if it was him or not, and they were already on edge about hearing _your_ team openly discussing more forest clearing." She crossed her arms, cocking her hip to the side defiantly.

"Wait, wait, wait, you mean they knew?" Selfridge leaned against the display, arms and legs crossed, small compared to the burly soldier still trying to stare Dr. Augustine down.

Grace nodded her head, "As far as I could tell he understood English and overheard, but you may want to ask your own team before you start pointing fingers, Parker, remember _they_ called _me_." Selfridge glared, but said nothing more.

Quaritch however looked like he was ready and willing to break both their necks, "We're talking about that same guy right? The Retard tester?"

Grace bristled and fixed him a glare that could wither most men, "Yeah, you know, the guy you murdered?"

Selfridge rolled his eyes. "Come on, Grace, no one was able to prove it was because of opening the chamber, and if it was so dangerous you should have had-had locks on them. He had unknown medical problems he hid from us, and we all miss him terribly, lets just bury the hatchet alright?" Quaritch enjoyed the imagery.

Grace let herself smile, "Well I guess we'll find out. We're meeting again in three days, and if it _is_ him I'm sure he'll have something to say to you and the company." She glared once more, Parker's lips tightened, Quaritch didn't look away.

"Now hold on, you're going to meet up and do what exactly? Bring them all back here for show and tell?" Quaritch nearly sneered.

Grace looked baffled, "Where else am I going to run the tests to know if it's really him?"

Quaritch looked smug, "Well that's you're problem but nobody's bringing hostiles onto my base, even _if_ they bring the Avatard with them." Grace looked ready to assault him.

Selfridge jumped up, holding his hands out and moving slightly between them, "Alright let's cool the jets here shall we? Grace, you can bring him here, but I just don't see _why_, we should let any of the others come in."

Grace removed her cold stare from Quaritch and looked to Parker, "Look, you want this to succeed don't you?" Parker looked wary. "Well _you're_ going to have to show some trust if you want any in return, we _just_ made first contact with another tribe. The Omaticaya are already unhappy about the mining your doing and we aren't even near their land. If you don't want these people to start attacking your troops or workers then you're going to have to make a better first impression." She said firmly. Selfridge looked uneasy, Quaritch looked disgusted, probably because he knew Parker wouldn't argue.

"Alright." Parker conceded, Quaritch sneered. "But no more then four and they'll be escorted at all times." He pointed to both of them to remind them he was still in charge and control. When Grace left, Quaritch was still sneering, Selfridge turned to him and leaned in. "Make sure they don't learn about the expansion plans, and do what ever you have to to make sure this doesn't come back and bite me."

Quaritch smiled, "I can do that." Once again Parker felt uneasy under the Colonel's unflinching, uncompromising gaze.

…

Trudy was waiting for Grace in the hallway, "That sounded promising." She said flatly.

Grace huffed in annoyance, "It's like talking to a monkey stuck in a brick wall."

Trudy followed closely behind the Doctor's agitated pace, "Can it really be him Doc? I mean, you saw him, if he was a cat he must have used up six of his lives."

Grace couldn't help the slight rise of the edge of her mouth, reminded of all the cat jokes he use to pull, then the moment left her, "We've got bigger problems. It sounded like Parker was sending out scouting teams for more mining."

Trudy licked her lips. She wasn't about to openly oppose the RDA, but she considered the Doctor her friend, "That won't make the natives very happy will it?" She said carefully. Grace didn't answer, instead picking up her pace. When she reached the labs, Max was waiting for her. His face was hopeful. Grace waited a moment before filling them in on the meeting, looking over the link chambers encircling them. Many of them still had Avatar drivers in them; 'coffins' as he use to call them. They had locks now, and wouldn't open unless you shut down the machines first, which included a huge red button so nothing like the tragedy of a year ago could happen again.

"Alright, here's the deal."

…

The Ikran people of the Eastern Sea were not happy about the news. The sky people were too close to their sky hunting lands for comfort, especially after the warning that had received from others tribes moving through the area. A traveling band had recently left the Omaticaya, stopping in with the Ikran people for a few weeks on their way back home. They spoke of the strange beings known as the sky people, tiny things who moved, spoke, and dressed strangely. They knew the sky people had terrible weapons and were eager to get back to their own people, this was many years ago however and the Ikran People had not heard anything of the Omaticaya nor the sky people since. Kn'indy had been hunting far towards their land when she rescued me, so it was not a hard connection to make. It was apparent I had come from the Omaticaya, or perhaps was one among the traveling peoples, but there were dreaded whispers that perhaps I was also a Na'vi who lived among the sky people. But if any of this were so, why would they leave me bleeding and bond cut?

The fact that the sky people were so close now and that I understood their words made the matter harder to judge. I waited while the elders debated, and Kn'indy tried to keep me from simply going off on my own but even she could not withstand my infectious excitement about learning more. For two days I could barely sit still, and felt such elation as to sing again. The clan was overrun with the talk of my storms now, questioning, some excited as I was and others afraid. Kn'indy kept most of them back from outright mobbing me, but she too wished to question me thoroughly. The elders called me in several times to ask me about these things I saw or heard upon my storm. They asked about the sky people, asked all I could tell them, and finally asked if I truly felt it wise to return. Obviously something terrible had happened for me to have my bond cut, but it obviously meant a great deal to me to find out why or what really happened. I tried my best not to seem impatient, but it did little to stop my bubbling excitement from showing. Finally the clan chief said they would speak on it for another day and tell us their decision the next; which is why Kn'indy had asked for three, she knew it would take them as long too decided.

The evening of the second day, when they were done speaking to me, I sat alone with Kn'indy outside the great tents. We simply sat, listening to the waves break upon the cliffs but I found myself humming. Kn'indy looked to me warmly. "I know how much it means to you No'name, to find your past… but I fear the answers."

I smiled at her, barely able to contain bouncing my knees. "I do not think Grace can be the cause for my pains, she is too kind and warm, the feelings I have for her tell me she is friend."

Kn'indy watched me look up into the night sky and placed her hand upon mine, "Just a friend?"

I looked to her and ceased my humming. The look in her eyes spoke of trust, and a fear which only now I realized was not just about me being hurt from my past. She looked into my eyes, searching, and for many moments neither of us spoke. "Are you asking if she could be my mate?" I finally said, for both of us. Kn'indy did not reply at once, but I could see the hidden pain on her face. I lowered my head; the possibility was there, after all, she looked at me with familiarity. Yet… "I do not think it is so… she did not recognize me, and though I am scarred, surely she would know me… if we were…" I let the words fall upon the wind as the waves crashed, my hand touching the slightly smoother lines of white flesh upon my face. "Did you notice?" I said quietly, "She had five fingers."

Kn'indy frowned, "As you have five toes, but you do not have five fingers; like all of our people."

My mind swam in ice water, "But look here, these scars…." I motioned to the ones running the length of my forearms, "Could my other fingers have been cut from me?"

Kn'indy arched her brown sadly, "We do not know if she has five toes as you My-" She stopped, almost jumping at the affectionate additive to a name I didn't have.

I looked to her, smiling softly. Slowly I reached out and took her hand with my own, "No Kn'indy, I can not think she is mine. I did not see the recognition and longing of bonded mate within her eyes, even as she seemed to know my voice. I do not think I would have changed so from simply being bond c-" But I stopped too …what if it was possible? Maybe I had been an entirely different person before being cut. Most do not survive the cutting of the bond, so great is the pain, and misery that followed survivors of the pain. It was so rare, who knew the lasting affects? Kn'indy sensed my doubt, and showed it on her face as well. Suddenly the cold of the night was colder, and the howl of the winds along the cliffs lonelier.

Then, she grabbed my hand, hard, "My storm rider, no matter what may come of meeting the sky people, no matter what may come of tomorrow; I will always ride the winds for you, my heart will always wait for you, and I will always watch you."

I looked to her then, marveling at her for the thousandth time, "My Kn', you are the light to my darkness, it is only you I see now and I can not think of looking away from you. Come what may, you will always be the light in my heart." With near tears from her golden pools, she leaned forward and pulled me close, our lips met again, but broke from this in slow moments later. She knew I would go no further, too afraid was I to try, but none the less we held each other and the night did not seem so cold. The wind did not seem so lonely, and something came to me from the distance storm: I whistled. The tune was high and clear, startling Kn'indy and unknown to me, several in the camp behind us. Their ears perked up at the strange new noise never before heard. She looked at me in wonder as I again continued the notes, following a haunting but also cheerful song I heard upon my storm. As the song continued, the sentries, and those in the tents settled back into sleep as they recognized the sounds of a song. Kn'indy could only look on as I continued the melancholy drifting hopeful utterance. We held each other still as the night went on, the song echoing off the cliffs below and into the emptiness.

…

The next day the Elders were quick to come to a decision; we would meet the sky people and learn of their world, and, flyers would be sent to the Omaticaya clan to learn what they could. Naturally I was sent among them to learn, but we were escorted by a pack of flyers, six total counting Kn'indy. Again we made our way to the clearing, the Ikran took to the trees and waited fussily for the strange plane to come. I was pacing below, my tail lashing, as Kn'indy watched me crouched beneath the foliage. "What if they can not find this place again?" I puzzled, Kn'indy shook her head, knowing I knew I was just worrying and thus only had to give me one of her half smiling looks for answer. I sighed through my teeth and promptly sat in the grass on my butt. The riders in the trees were nervous as well, but hid it stoically, they were also excited. Near midday we heard the familiar buzz of the sky people's plane, like an angry wasp coming in over the trees. Kn'indy ceased braiding grass into the tips of my hair and we both leapt up.

"The plane! The plane!" I cried, and Kn'indy laughed at my excitement. As the plane grew closer, it hesitated, but by then we could see Grace in its belly waving and pointing down to us. Then slowly it landed.

Grace came out, eagerness in her eyes to see us once again; when she saw me she looked relieved, "Mighty ones, thank you for coming I had feared-" She stopped, wondering if she was being insulting.

"Hail, Grace of the skypeople!" I said in English. Kn'indy arched her brow at the strange greeting.

Grace smiled softly and returned it, "Hail… ah… Warrior, what do I call you?" She frowned.

I smiled brightly, "Kea'Peyral is what most call me."

Grace chewed her lower lip, "Kea'Peyral, Kn'indy." She looked to both of us. "My people have agreed to see you, but the, chief of my people will only let one of you come in our home." Each of us looked to each other, stiffening at the news, it was a bad sign not to welcome all of us. But then, the sky people were small, perhaps they were afraid of so many? I and Kn'indy exchanged looks.

"Surely they will not fear just two?" I said.

Grace looked uncomfortable, as if she was speaking something opposite to what she felt, "He has said for just yourself…"

Kn'indy took me by the arm, and we both frowned. "..he is chief, it is his right to say who may come into his home."

I shook my head however, "Right, but not polite… why do they fear us so?"

Grace finally stepped forward, "Kn'indy, I do not see why you can not come with us. I shall answer to my chief on your behalf." We both looked to her, Kn'indy looking slightly surprised and at the same time suspicious. We conferred with the other riders, and eventually it was agreed upon that three would head back to tell of what happened, and three -including Kn'indy- would fly after us, at least to keep guard outside the home of the Sky people or send alarm if something should happen to us. Carefully I sat inside the strange plane, Grace showed me how to tie myself in, and she signaled for the sky person to set off with us. The ride was stranger still, moving upwards, haltingly, and then forwards. There was no flow to it at first, jolting, unsteady, much like the sky people moved. This creature did not follow the ways of the air, it fought against it and used it to do what it wished, it turned, and stopped in place in ways our Ikran could not. The riders who flanked us had to swoop and dive, turning with the wind and could not come too close to the plane for the way the winds seem to thrash around it, like at the break of the sea against the cliff.

From this, a simple mode of transportation, I knew the sky people were great indeed, possibly greater than my own people, for I also recognized the deadly guns spaced about the strange plane. This beast had a sting worse then our arrows, yet was tamed by the sky people. It was a strange world. Grace smiled at me when I looked to her, though I had long caught her starring into me questioningly. "Thank you, for trusting us, Kea'Peyral."

I smiled back to her, it was difficult to speak over the noise their plane made. It was a magnificent beast, but one could not hunt with it. The noise was far too loud, unless, unless that was why they created such guns to kill from very far. These thoughts flew through me, and I spoke suddenly. "Grace, do you know me?"

She was surprised by the question. Finally she shook her head. "I do not know, No'Name… something in you I feel I do, but I can not know for sure." She grit her teeth then, "But I do know a way of finding out, if you will let us."

I smiled at her still, but knit my brow, "If I will let you?" She took a deep breath and began to explain as we flew. They wished to test me somehow with these things called 'machines' a word I recognized as English, but took a while to remember fully. She told me these machines could definitely tell me if she knew me for certain and for that, I readily agreed. The storm held many questions, rolling across my mind as we neared their home, but when I looked upon it still more shook me terribly. Their home was harsh, cut like the fields, barren as the cliffs and lined with huts and tents far too massive to be made yet far too unnatural to be grown. We flew a single circle as Grace watched me and my people look upon the sky peoples' home in awe and sorrow. They were a great people, to be so small yet make so much, but they fought against the land, and for that, the land fought against them.

I could distantly hear the crackle of the farvoice as Grace spoke to them of 'not firing, they were friendlies, escorts to an important guest.' I feared for my people, but Grace reassured me. Yet her scent spoke of the same fear. We landed without trouble however, by a home with a small garden. We set down right on the grass and our Ikran followed. Several of the sky people came out to watch us, and still more of the Na'vi came to see us too. There were many of them, dressed as the sky people, moving as the sky people. The riders and Kn'indy settled their Ikran as Grace and I stepped from the plane. A flurry of sky people came running out then, moving in formation. Each of them wore the strange clear masks, and each of them carried the deadly guns. Grace looked angered. She motioned for me to wait as she moved to intercept the sky people coming toward us. I went to Kn'indy as she spoke to them with strong hand motions. "My Kn', Grace has said to me there is a way to know who I am!"

Kn'indy looked surprised, patting Ean'Taw, her Ikran. "My Storm rider, I fear for you, these people fight against the land, they carry terrible things and tame terrible beasts, I do not know if you are safe."

I smiled to her, taking her hands, "Grace protects us, as does Eywa." She frowned still, but said no more. At length Grace came back to us with a sky person standing stiffly, his face placid yet smelling greatly of fear.

"Kea'Peyral, Kn'indy, this is a high warrior of the sky people, he brings some of our people to watch us and keep us safe." The way she said it was strange, her words did not match her voice or her face. The small sky person barked loudly, mangling the English so I could not understand it. The others seem to know it though, as they moved in uniform. They turned as one and then slowly surrounded us. Grace's lips were tight, but she tried to smile for us. "If you will come with me, I can show you these machines we spoke of."

I shrugged to Kn'indy, "We go were you take us, we are your guests." Grace did not drop the tight smile, but motioned for us to follow. Kn'indy spoke a few kind words to Ean'Taw, who nudged me as well, and then left her with the other two Riders. A small group of the sky people stayed behind with them, and the others followed us. We passed large groups of equipment, wooden beams with ropes, and tracks, and strange paths made of flat stone. We came to one of the huts of the sky people as Grace spoke to us of the things around us. Explaining they were exercise tools, and Kn'indy and I found it funny they should need to make their own when they could have gotten the same play from being outside in the real world. The hut had a strange door upon it, and the entire thing was made of the same odd strong stone they made everything with. Kn'indy tapped it with her hand and she spoke to Grace of its thickness, stronger then the skin of the 'Titanothere' they called them. Grace then told us we were going to enter a room that was made for looking at the sky people who bonded with the Na'vi. Kn'indy and I were confused by this, but then Grace said;

"It is also the place where we can test to see if you are who we think you are." And all other thoughts left me. The eerie familiarity with the strange world, the place, as if I had been there before did not leave me however. I held no memories of any of it, but _felt_ like I should, the storm rolled and deepened within my mind. Grace opened the door and stepped in before us, I and then Kn'indy followed. The room was square as was everything the sky people made, and had large panes of 'glass' I knew it was called, which allowed us to look into the larger room were several sky people without the masks looked at us. Grace motioned to them and the escort of sky people slowly entered the room behind us taking positions against the wall. Kn'indy twitched her tail nervously, as did I. There were two sky people in the room as well, wearing the masks, and covered in white cloth much like the coats but covering their full body. Grace smiled to us, an excitement and eagerness in her voice. "Peyral, if you will let us, we can test you here." She motioned to the table.

A surge of excitement and fear swept through me and for a moment I was frozen in the spot. Now that it came too it, now that the answers were possibly before me, I was afraid… Kn'indy took my hand, I looked to her. She starred into my eyes and I starred into hers' and I, without a word, I sat upon the table. I didn't know what to expect when Grace put the odd 'wires' onto me. She placed them in several positions, and the two in white suits aided her. Grace smiled to me so warmly, but then her face grew worried. "Peyral, I'm going to show you something now, because I need to you understand and see. We Na'vi of the sky people are, bonded, made, from ourselves. This is not my true form you see." I and Kn'indy narrowed our brows, but we didn't interrupt. Grace crossed over and sat on the other table, "I'm going to lay down, and my body will sleep. You will then see me over there." She pointed beyond the glass, "Only you will see a sky person, not a Na'vi."

I looked to Kn'indy, and she to me, then I spoke. "You mean, you ride, _in_ a Na'vi?"

Grace nodded slowly, "The sky people have a 'machine' which lets them be in two bodies. While one body sleeps, we walk in the other, do you understand?" I did not totally, but it sounded much like when I bonded with Palulukan and Pa'li… all sky people became one with their bond? Then, was I not a sky person?

"But which is the true you?" Kn'indy asked her.

Grace answered, "If you mean which body we were born with, it is the 'human' body you see around you, the small ones."

"Are there among the sky people those born as the Na'vi?" I asked.

Grace looked to me sadly, "No." And I felt a heaviness within my heart. Kn'indy held my hand firmly, and I knew we were both frightened. Grace watched us both, but the excitement was apparent upon her. "I shall sleep now Peyral, and show you." She waited for us to answer, so I nodded. Kn'indy nodded too, and Grace finally lay back. Her body lay still for a while, and we wondered if there would be some kind of sign. A few moments later however, we heard her voice again, but her lips did not move. "Peyral, Kn'indy, I'm here." We looked for the source of the voice, and heard a tapping on the glass. I turned my head and saw her then, a sky person, pale as the others yet with hair red as flame. She waved as us, smiling with a small mouth. Her face looked older in this body, but the moment I saw her, another surge of feeling flew over me.

One which gripped my hands and feet, and made me shiver; I felt I knew her. I felt this more strongly then I felt anything else, she was real to me in a way I could not explain nor understand. I knew her. But the storms were rolling, too much, too fast. I could barely turn to Kn'indy as my hands began to shake. "Kn'help m-" She griped me by the arms, but it was too late, the world began to fade and suddenly, I did not know where I was. The storm raged.


	5. Chapter 5: The Secret Storm

**Chapter V: The Secret Storm**

Grace found herself sliding through the familiar rainbow tunnel, punctuated by flashes of white lightning. When she awoke back in her own body she felt the familiar stiffness, the ache which always seemed to remind her she was again human, but this and the wave of fatigue was overridden by the surge of excitement. She waited only long enough to get a hand pad with the results of the testing and skim over them before announcing to the two Na'vi her presence and revealing her true form. The pretty one, with sharp features yet an almost heart shaped face stood beside the massive Na'vi covered in scars. She was a great huntress, her bearing spoke of that, but he was something entirely different. The way he carried himself, the way he moved, it was like coiled steel, betraying the mix of emotions his face always displayed under the scars. However, the moment she tapped on the glass and he turned to look at her… all hell broke loose.

At first his hands began to shake, his eyes widened, but then his golden pupils dilated fully black. His nostrils flared and he said "Kn' Help-" before his body sagged into her arms. His tail thrashed, his ears laid flat, and he unleashed a growl like a mountain lion coming out of a tranquilizer sleep. "My Storm Rider, come back to me!" Kn'indy was saying which turned to shouting, the soldiers were nervous, now raising their weapons. The readings were going mad, they were getting so much data the computers could barely keep up, his neurons were firing at impossible rates! His eyes were still closed, but he hissed terribly, and then, he went berserk! His eyes snapped open, the pupils impossibly dilated, and he began thrashing. Kn'indy tried to still him, calling for him, her tail thrashing as wildly as his own. He tried to stand, pulling the leads attached to him and throwing the monitoring devices to the ground, they broke with the hiss and pops of electricity. The guards were now pointing their guns at him, backing together nervously.

Kn'indy struggled with him, now too focused to speak. It was very difficult to keep him from throwing her to the wall, he had gotten much stronger, and compared to the width of his shoulders, she was as a child trying to climb Pa'li. Grace had no idea what was happening but she knew it was only a matter of time until the soldiers panicked as well, she screamed over the speakers for them to open the door and get back. One or two leaped to do so, and suddenly the Na'vi was picking Kn'indy up off of him. He threw her bodily into the soldiers, and slammed his forearms against the glass, a web of cracks flowed from the impact, and he was literally jumping on the tables, and bouncing off the walls. The fury of his hisses and screams was like no sound they had ever heard a Na'vi make. Kn'indy struggled with the soldiers on the floor, Grace repeatedly shouted for them to hold their fire, and the Mad Na'vi instantly bolted through the door once it was open. As if a hurricane had just left the room, everyone looked about them in stunned silence.

Kn'indy was soon up and following after him, the shouts of alarm from the guards outside the door swallowed by her calling after him. Grace, Max, and their team were left alone with the machine giving them a dead signal from the break. Max came to his senses first. "My god, these readings, the brain activity is off the charts!"

Grace cursed and slammed her fist into the glass, "Somebody get a line to Quaritch not to shoot them, I'm going into chamber four, and somebody figure out what the hell happened!" Grace slammed herself into the chamber, and tried to calm down. The instant she was back in her body she felt pain in her shoulder where her body had been kicked off the table in his insane tumbling. Grace got to her feet; she told the still shocked and afraid guards to stay back as she herself jumped out the door. It took her only moments to see the two Na'vi fleeing across the garden. He was bowling over any in his way, an AMP suit unlucky enough to try and stop him and was literally slammed aside. Soldiers flew across the square, Grace barked at all of them to stand down, causing more confusion. Kn'indy was hot on his tail, running full out to catch up to him, Grace could hear her shouting for him even from this distance.

Suddenly an Alarm was blaring and more soldiers were heading their way, two AMP suits in their midst, Grace felt her lungs burn but she had to do something. Her heart was hammering in her chest, and it jumped into her throat as the previous AMP suit succeeded in grappling with him. He was beating upon the glass careless of the damage it was doing to his knuckles, wrenching his body wildly and tearing his own skin against the grasping metal; Kn'indy was upon them in seconds, pleading for the driver to let him go, and for him to stop. Grace saw the soldiers take up a firing line; she turned to them instead, placing herself in front of them. "Weapons down! Weapons down!" she shouted. A group of Avatar drivers came out to see what the commotion was about, noticing the death match between the two struggling Na'vi and the AMP driver. He had gotten his arms free and was now beating upon the suit with both hands, screaming in a feral rage!

The Other Na'vi who stood with their Ikran also came to see what happened, raising their weapons and shouting to add to the confusion. With a final slam Kea'Peyral gripped the AMP arm by the shoulder and began to pull. His back muscles contorted, rippling with strain, he hissed and flecks of foam flew upon the glass. Kn'indy was pulling at his arms trying to stop him. Grace turned, and there was the horrible sound of scraping metal. Suddenly the AMPs left arm was ripped from it with a triumphant roar from Kea'Peyral! Overbalancing the AMP crashed to its side, and the soldiers streamed past Grace, the other Na'vi ran to meet them. Kn'indy gripped Kea'Peyral's braid and she screamed for him.

"My Storm rider!" She brought her own braid around, Grace was yelling for them to stop! Then, just as quickly as it began, Kea'Peyral fell forward, as one dead. The Na'vi surrounded Kn'indy and Kea'Peyral with their backs, arrows pointed to the soldiers hooting shouts of warning. The soldiers in turn formed a firing line around the Na'vi and AMP suit, Grace nearly tripped over them in her rush.

"Stop, stop, stop!" She shouted in both languages. The alarm still blared, but nobody at least was firing. The Na'vi and soldiers stood tensely, Grace made one last look at the soldiers, holding out her arms and then turned back to the Na'vi. "Please great warriors, let me pass!" Kea'Peyral was lying on the ground, Kn'indy crouched over him. The Na'vi hesitated, but Grace's face was genuinely pleading so they eventually let her pass. "Kin'dy, is he-?" Grace blurted. Kn'indy shook her head, speaking softly as she cradled his own.

"The storm has passed." She said, her braid lay still upon her back, unconnected to his. Grace sighed deeply in relief. His eyes were open slightly, looking at her and Grace in utter confusion. 'What happened?' He mouthed, Kn'indy shushed him, and Grace furrowed her brow in worry. Then she heard the most terrible sound her ears ever recognized. The sound thumping of metallic legs, a specific sound, there was only one machine modified and specialized as to sound heavier in step. Quaritch's own personal AMP. She turned to see the Colonel making his way calmly yet purposely across the square, he was fully armed and further he had several troops in tow. The heavy mech laden with more weaponry then needed and painted with a golden dragon on its sides came right up to his troops firing line, well within range of the Na'vi arrows, but he didn't show an inch of fear. His AMP's loud speaker crackled to life.

"Attention all Na'vi, lower your weapons or we will open fire." He said, Grace hastily stepped between them.

"Quaritch, I've got this under control!" She answered loudly. Quaritch didn't even bat an eye.

"Weapons free. All hostiles have until the count of ten to lower their weapons." He said over Grace's words.

"Damnit Quaritch, stand down!" The soldiers around him looked at each other nervously, the Na'vi with their bows did not move.

"One." He barked.

"Quaritch!" Grace shouted again.

"Two." He answered.

Grace turned to the hunters, "Mighty warriors,"

"Three."

"I beg of you to pity the foolish sky people,"

"Four."

"In their fear they can not see,"

"Five." The colonel relished each word.

"I beg you to show mercy on our blindness," Grace went to her knees.

"Six."

"Lower your weapons and let us find a way to peace!"

"Seven." The Soldiers now steadied themselves. The Na'vi looked to Grace, "Eight." She looked to them pleadingly. "Nine."

"Please!" She shouted; slowly their weapons came down.

Quaritch hovered over the final word, tasting the near death on his lips. Then just as calmly, as if nothing was happening he ordered: "I want a group of ten, escort our guests off base." He said marching up to the Na'vi. The warrior didn't raise their bows.

Grace spoke quickly, "I would ask we meet again in two days and I will bring you word of what we have learned, and I will sit with your people at length." She promised, "For now I ask that you take him away from this foolishness." She said urgently. The Na'vi looked to each other, Kea'Peyral was able to stand then, still dazed and bleeding with Kn'indy at his side. She nodded to the others, and without waiting for the soldiers to surround them, they started off toward their Ikran. Quaritch came up beside Dr. Augustine, and spoke aside without looking at her.

"Never again." And then he marched forward following behind the group of Na'vi surrounded by Soldiers.

…

Grace and Parker had a terrible argument which Quaritch interrupted and inflamed. Parker's office was like a Warzone. The techs outside winched as even through the closed blinds and doors they could hear Quaritch's matter of fact accusatory tone as he shouted, "A clear breech of RDA defense regulations!" and such words as 'willful endangerment' and 'insubordination'. It was two hours later that Grace sat slumped in her chair, as Max poured her a second cup of coffee.

"So it's just another funding cut?" He said trying to lighten the blow. They both knew how strapped they were, and the equipment was starting to suffer from it, they were having more and more trouble with glitches and bugs that nobody could figure out how to fix, let alone what caused it.

"Oh no, we're getting a full on security detail now." Grace said ruefully. Max knit his brow and Grace looked at him as if he wouldn't believe it. "Wainfleet."

Maxs' eyes widened, "Quaritch's second?"

Grace nodded, her expression never dropping, "As if we didn't have enough trigger happy watch dogs on our backs." Grace poured another brown liquid in her cup and drank deeply, it wasn't coffee.

"For how long?" Max winced.

"Everafter." She said lulling her head back.

Max was silent a moment then his face brightened, "We got back some results from the scan."

Grace lifted her head, "And?" She probed.

Max smiled brightly, "You're not going to believe this." He handed her a pad and Grace set down her cup.

"What is it?" She asked, Max didn't answer, letting her own amazement grow larger and larger before his eyes. "This isn't possible."

Max nodded excitedly, "I know!"

Grace sat forward, "This is impossible!"

"I know!" Maxed nearly laughed. "The initial scans were almost exact like his own, but the minute he went… well… the connections skyrocketed!" Grace was pouring over the multiple sheets, the focus melting away her exhaustion.

"This is definitely an Avatar brain but the connections, there are way too many connections firing all at once, it's like he's…" Grace stood moving to a larger computer, Max followed. She brought up a large display, she brought up his old scans. The familiar brain activity filled her with nostalgia, then she over-laid the new information. "Max, this just can't be right, it has to be a malfunction."

Max bent closer to her, "But what if it isn't?" Grace stood back from the image. Onscreen the side view of a not quite human brain flared with a few burns of color like thermal imagery of heat blooms, the new information slowly intermeshed with it and the screen showed a display like lightning in the night sky. The entire brain lit up bright, neon, blue and white. "If we had a genetic sample we could be certain, but with his voice, and these tests…" Max leaned on the computer, "It's him Grace." Grace looked at the extreme amount of connections, far more than the human brain normally had. "It's him." Max smiled at her, and Grace stared in wonder at the implications of the data and what she realized she had known all along. But how was it possible? How?

…

Back in the air, four Na'vi upon three Ikran flew in silence away from the strange base of the sky people. Kn'indy didn't know what to say, nor did the two who flew with them. Even now they kept a respectable distance, more then was necessary for flight space. He was silent with his newly bandaged arms around her. His strong grip was tender, an apology he continued to feel for the things she told him. Gently he laid the side of his head between her shoulders, steeped in remorse for the slight bruises she had on her back and arms. She had grown sick of hearing his regret, and her harsh quieting of them had created the silence they now flew in, yet, she was not angry at him, but herself. What she had nearly done… she remembered clearly the reasoning behind it, she remembered her hands firmly taking his braid and his own seeking tendrils. There was an instant of indecisions, and in that, she was spared the deed for which she knew she could never receive forgiveness. The bond, was no weapon, though she had almost used it so.

…

The next morning, Kea'Peyral sat with the elders. The story had been told over cook fires, and all knew what had happened. There was no talk of blame, nor was there talk of fear. But they did speak of strange things they had all seen. The sky people who walked as Na'vi while they dreamed, the skins they used to make them stronger then a Na'vi, the great huts of stone-harder-than-stone. It worried the people, as did the words of Grace. The way the sky people lived, the things they tamed and the terrible 'guns'. It did not seem like blindness, but madness. They still waited for word from the Omaticaya people, and they were eager to hear from Grace of these things they had seen and heard. However, it finally did come to the subject of Kea'Peyral loosing himself to his storms before the sky people and how he attacked Kn'indy and the demon skin. They would need to make amends for his behavior, though he vehemently tried to take all the blame.

The elders agreed he would need to speak of his sorrow to them personally, but though he was not truly of the Ikran people of the Eastern Sea, he was as close to one of their sons as possible and for this they would share the burden with him. It was a tense moment as Kn'indy retold her part of the tale, including what had happened when Kea'Peyral's storm overtook him. She hesitated briefly at a certain part, when she spoke of him tearing off the arm of the demon skin… "He pulled and pulled as if he would take off his own arms… and…" Kn'indy looked to him, and then to the Elders for the briefest moment, then slightly bowed her head. "…then the storms passed. He fell into my arms after that." Kn'indy lowered her gaze, keeping her chin firm. Kea'Peyral frowned at her expression, guilt and shame plain on his face. The elders soon released them to speak of these things, and Kea'Peyral went on his own towards the edge of the cliff. Kn'indy watched him and wished to follow, but for the briefest moment, something stayed her. In this moment two other Na'vi came up beside him, the two riders from before who had followed them.

Nì'win and Txon'taw; the first a very lithe female Na'vi and the second a slightly darker male Na'vi. Ni'win patted Kea'Peyral on the back. "You did well brother, we all saw your battle with the demon skin harder than stone." She said.

"You have given us hope where there would be fear." Txon'taw smiled.

Kea'peyral just frowned shaking his head, "I endangered and shamed our people…" He replied.

Txon'taw slapped him on the back suddenly, surprising him and Kn'indy, "One of our sky people did this, he said he was grateful to meet real Na'vi."

Kea'Peyral blinked, "You spoke with the sky people Na'vi?"

He and Ni'win nodded, "They spoke with us. They were eager to learn." Kea'Peyral looked confused, Txon'taw smiled broadly.

Ni'win put her hands on her hips copying the attitude she had seen, "These Dreamwalkers, they wished to learn all they could, many questions were asked of us and of our Ikran. There were other sky people, the real ones in masks who excitedly spoke to us as well." A slight smile spread across Kea'Peyrals face.

"You see?" Txon'taw grinned. "They may be blind, but at least many of them wish to learn."

Ni'win giggled, "It is not so hopeless that we should frown with a face as long a Pa'li." Kea'Peyral laughed at this, and soon the three were chatting hunched together by the edge. As the sea brushed against the cliffs, Kea'Peyral allowed those of his people to calm his fears, remind him he is not alone, and speak of things which could come. They showed him they would still stand beside him, sharing the burden of his storms even if he was not a true member of the clan. The other riders were expected in two or three days, such was the distance from the people of the Eastern Sea to the Omaticaya. It took as long for the Ikran to cover the distance if they flew straight without stop. Something which spoke of the strength of Kea'Peyral to survive that long in flight as Kn'indy brought him to them, especially with his injuries as severe as they were. Kea'Peyral spoke endless praise of her Ikran's swiftness and of her beauty, intelligence, kindness until the others were set into permanent smiles like children. His love was honest and open for all to see. Kn'indy smiled to herself, seeing him smile, yet… in her heart her own storm grew. A storm of doubt, and something else… something hidden, and shame overtook her face. Slowly she turned, and walked away.


	6. Chapter 6: The Storm of Secrets

**Chapter VI: The Storm of Secrets.**

The next two days, Grace made sure to arrange the schedule so a science team would head out to the location of their meeting, avoiding suspicion by placing other Avatar drives names' on the list and moving the coordinates slightly south. She also made certain those drivers knew she would be going out there alone, and that one of them would need to feign sickness or injury. So dedicated was her team though, the morning before the mission the agreed upon driver really twisted her Avatar's ankle while doing exercises. It was on short notice then that Grace learned of the accident and went in the driver's place, eliciting curses from Wainfleet who had to rush to go with them.

"Your superiors aren't going to like you going out on your own so soon." He said as they stood now in the Pandoran jungles.

"Look we all have a job to do, it's why we are here what we're paid for, so let me do my job." She shrugged him off. Wainfleet had no answer for that so as ordered he stayed behind to watch the majority of the team while Grace ventured off alone. It was dangerous to leave the relative safety of the Sampson, and foolish to trek alone through the jungles such a distance, but Grace had to find him. She would take the risk, if only to be able to talk to him again, to tell him the truth. She moved swiftly, almost recklessly, but her ears were always alert. She needn't have feared however, there were five Na'vi above her, watching her every move and keeping safe her journey away from the other sky people. They had long ago heard the Sampson landing and went to meet it. When Grace found a particularly rough spot to cross at the bank of a river, three Na'vi dropped to the ground all around her, eliminating the need to cross and outright scarring the crap out of her. Kea'Peyral was among them.

"I see you Grace." He smiled, Grace was still breathing heavily, holding her hand to her chest.

"It's you!" She gasped in English but not in accusation, not in relief, no, as she actually looked upon him- as she once again stood face to face- she recognized his Avatar's eyes. The gait of the body, the way he carried himself, and his outer appearance may have all changed but behind his eyes was still the same person she had long ago grown to love. As she looked at him now, covered head to toe in terrible scars, she was overwhelmed with a regret and worry for him. She remembered too clearly the day he had raised his hand when she asked for volunteers, without hesitation, without reservations. Thought she had detailed the dangers, though she had vowed to herself to take responsibility for each of their lives as they trusted them in her hands, he more then anyone else had given everything for her program. He was as much the poster boy of the Avatar program as she was the mother, so closely was he intertwined with making sure all of their work actually worked. He always held a place of respect in her heart, and she felt that place die when she buried the remains of his human body. But now. There he was, right in front of her. The same happy go lucky smile, the same kind hearted fool she had always known.

Grace grabbed him in her strongest hug, not caring about the confused looks she received for it. "You damned idiot, you great big stupid moron!" She laid the side of her head against him, holding him safe. "Why did it have to be you? It should have been me!" She grieved anew, soft tears falling. "It should have been me." He looked at her with utter shock and confusion on his face, uncertainty stilled him except for his hands which reflexively held onto her in return. "I'm so sorry, I'm sorry you had to go through all of this." She breathed. He didn't speak as she cursed herself for the true idiot, he did not move away from her as she took his arms and looked into his eyes, he did not even blink when she told him his name. The Na'vi collectively stood in silence as Grace spoke to Kea'Peyral in English, shaking him, holding him, crying onto him. They looked at each other questioningly for they all thought the same thing. She acted as mate, or perhaps his mother, but the words she said did not seem to reach Kea'Peyral who stood looking at her blankly. Grace repeated words to him, but he only continued to look to her. Finally, he said, "I do not remember that."

Grace looked at him sadly, though her tears stopped, "I'll tell you everything."

Kea'Peyral shook his head, "You do not have too. We sent riders to the Omaticaya the same day we were to meet with you, they have returned. They have told us much." Now Grace looked at him in confusion. Kea'Peyral's face was gentle in his rage, for the other Na'vi now well knew the terrible price he had paid for the sky people and how they had repaid it. Kea'Peyral took Grace's hand softly, "We have much to speak about, but not here. It is not safe here, you will come back with us to the village." Grace looked to him and saw a regret she hadn't placed before. "There is much we must speak about." Without a word Grace allowed him to lift her, and soundly leapt across the river. He carried her like one would a small child with ease, he moved swiftly even under her weight. They entered the clearing which was the original meeting place, and Grace was set to ride with another's Ikran even as Kea'Peyral rode with Kn'indy who waited for him.

They took flight and made the long trek across the forests, arriving at the village long before nightfall. There she was led to a large tent, set higher upon the level ground where the elders waited for them. The chief and spiritual leader sat with another Na'vi Grace recognized from the Omaticaya clan, a young man named Tsu'tey. He, Kea'peyral and other Na'vi took seats around a deeply set stone circle in the ground. Tsu'tey looked at them with interest as they came in, though she could see the beginnings of a permanent frown to his features. They all sat around the circle, and the chief made a show of looking to all seated around her. She was dressed elegantly in a chest wrap, red paint, and other ornaments. "We are here now to speak of the sky people and the journey of one of their Dreamwalkers who was wronged by his own and the Omaticaya greatly." The Olo'eytkan said. Grace knit her brow, but did not speak. The chief then motioned to Tsu'tey, who stood.

"I was there when he and Grace told the Omaticaya of the sky people's destruction near our lands. They told us before of the divide in the sky people, those who came to learn and those who came for the stones beneath the ground. We were angry!" He gestured strongly, "They who came before the dream walkers wanted only to learn of us, to speak with us and spoke nothing of the stone beneath the ground! We saw the smoke, and we saw the lights, but we did not know of the murders they were committing. Destroying whole forests, taking life without care!" He then looked to both, "but these Dreamwalkers said they did not know of their plans, knew nothing of their desire for the stones." Grace frowned. That wasn't entirely true, they certainly had scientific objectives, but they well knew the metal was what really drove the backing for the missions. The scientific missions were barely excuse enough for the corporations, though they were greatly toted above the more 'plunderous' side.

It was true the initial explorations of Pandora were years gone, as was the first shaky contact with the Na'vi but it was only after the Avatar program was created that talks with the Na'vi held any meaningful results. She was able to set up her school, teach many of the people English even as she and others learned Na'vi. But that was all before the incident. Grace had been on Pandora for a long time, learning about Na'vi biology and culture, they knew a little of the language back then but real contact with the Na'vi including venturing into their lands was nearly impossible for the sky people. The Na'vi were weary of the sky people from the beginning, and seeing the destruction of the forest where the sky people made their home made it ever harder. With the Avatars though, they were curious enough to allow the sky people's Na'vi to visit. Perhaps forging a false instant trust by appearing like them, it was a bit deceptive, but Grace had never known about the expanding mining plans. She was far too busy getting the Avatar program up and running back on earth. It took five years to get to Pandora, and that long home again.

Grace had made the trip back to earth reluctantly, but the development could only be done there. Who knew what the RDA had done or planned in all the time she was gone and working on the Avatar Program? She began the program on Pandora, sending back development ideas and getting the whole thing started through communications. Once it reached the critical testing phase she had to return. Sure it had only taken two years to get the cutting edge work started and finished, but Grace had been with the program the ten years it took to get it right, plus the ten years it took to go and return. He spent all the time she was returning to earth working however, so technically, he had physically worked on the Project longer then she herself. Still, it took five years to get back to Pandora and she didn't plan on ever leaving again. Tsu'tey ended his tale of the Omaticaya's dealings with the sky people by coming to the very incident which caused Grace's school to close down, when the two Dreamwalkers told Eytukan of the Sky people plot to begin "strip mining".

Even if it was off the Omaticaya lands, the Na'vi were angry, then they had told them exactly what "strip mining" was, _then_ the Na'vi were furious. They could not do such a thing to Eywa, it was beyond reason and thought! Raised voices lead to the Na'vi crowding in to hear, which led to more outrage, and the sky people became afraid. They tried to withdraw the Dreamwalkers, angry at them for telling the Na'vi of their secrets, the Na'vi grew angrier and tried to stop them from leaving so they could explain why such a thing had to be done. One of the sky people fired, then everyone was running and shouting. Tsu'tey spoke then of how the Omaticaya returned fire to protect their people, yet still there were some who were angry and felt betrayed by the Dreamwalkers who they had come to trust and learn from, when the sky people split apart, they gave chase. Tsu'tey grew quieter. "It was I who made sure Grace was not harmed as my Father asked, but I did not see what became of the other. When we found him, it was too late. One of my people, in his rage, leapt upon him as his body fell limp and cut his braid."

Grace's eyes widened. She knew the Avatar body falling limp meant that was when Quaritch had physically pulled them out. Could it have been the reason he was transported into his Na'vi body? The mental break down coupled with the trauma of severing the neural whips? It was a dual severing of connections, perhaps even at the same time, but the severe pain from the Avatar body, from the cut, must have been what drew the free floating mind into that body over the other. Such strong pain, it demanded a survival reaction… but the process itself… who knew what damage there was to the brain? What processes were shunted if anything at all actually wrote itself correctly into the foreign brain? It shouldn't have been possible for the human brain to correctly settle itself.

It was one thing for the Na'vi brain which began experiencing the worlds' sights and sounds when the Driver took control to transfer over to human and back to remember because the human brain experienced what the Na'vi brain did at the same time, viewing it with their own seated consciousness which is what causes the fatigue from suddenly writing all the experiences of the day from the Na'vi brain back to the human brain all at once when they returned back to their original body. Yet memories which were originally written into the human brain that the Na'vi hybrid brain never actually experienced had no purchase in the Na'vi brain unless the human brain 'remembered' them while Na'vi, making memories not remembered while operating the Na'vi brain harder to remember. Therefore, if a human brain were suddenly thrust whole onto a Na'vi brain it was no wonder there was a disconnection! Recollection was hard enough without the trauma of neural severing, let alone the strange mental insatiability that afflicted his normal brain.

When Grace heard his own tale of how he came to join the Ikran people of the eastern sea, she barely felt the pity and worry for him, so busy was she thinking about the possibilities. Finally the chief motioned to Grace and asked her to share her tale which Kea'Peyral did not remember. Grace's Na'vi was halting as she tried to explain, even as her mind worked quickly over the puzzle that was Kea'Peyral's mind. Grace spoke a great deal of the other world they came from, the reasons they came, and then she detailed how she and Kea'Peyral worked together to bridge the gap between the sky people and the Na'vi. All of them listened with interest, including Kea'Peyral himself. Sometimes the chief would ask questions, clarify something, or wait for Grace to explain something for which she wasn't certain how to in Na'vi. There were concepts she simply could not translate, things she had no way of conveying. But as she began to talk about him, he grew more and more lost in her words. She could see recollection in his eyes sometimes, but mostly she saw a confused concentration as she told him all he had forgotten.

Behind them, as Grace spoke and night approached, many Na'vi gathered sitting to hear the tales. Many stopped working, and even forwent eating to listen of the strange sky people. Tsu'tey confirmed a lot of what Grace said, having heard it before when the sky people first talked with the Omaticaya. When she was finished there was a great deal of silence, every now and again, a question or clarification and then the chief asked Kea'Peyral if he wished to have his name back. Grace was confused by this, but Kea'Peyral's reply confused her even more. "I have heard all Doc'orGraceAg'stine has said but I can not think these things are me. If it is as she says, then Eywa did not give me purpose in these storms… it was the sky people who cursed me with them, within this body." Grace's brow furrowed and she looked like she wanted to shake him out of it but he continued.

"When she says these things of the sky person I was, I find feelings, and see sights but always they are within the storm. When I think of myself and my feelings that are Na'vi, I see who I am. Kn'indy calls me, storm rider for this… this beast I once was and have bonded with. But I do not see myself as this beast. I am not the storm." He looked to Grace then, his face as stone. "You have said you buried the ashes of this sky person you knew."

Grace nodded, looking at him so pityingly. "Yes." She breathed.

"Then let him stay dead. He is not me." Kea'Peyral stood then, paying respects to all there and left. They did not try to stop him.

…

Kn'indy caught up with me as I hurried through our people out to the cliffs. I was walking quickly, my mind and heart racing. I heard her calling for me; "My Storm Rider!" But I did not stop until she said it a third time. When she came to me I could see the mask of pain reflected on her from me. She knew what burned and twisted in my heart more then anyone. "Why do you run from your name?" She nearly cried.

"Because it is not mine to claim!" I said just as forcefully. She looked confused and would not let me turn from her; "Every part of me just wanted to run from there, away from Grace, away from the sky people who abandoned me, from the Na'vi who have slain who I once was. I can not face it! Lies, it is all lies!" She tried to hold my arm but I moved away from her.

"It is your past, it will always be a part of you." she said soothingly.

I shook my head fiercely, "A past of pain trapped in a maze of 'Insanity' which I do not wish for!" Kn'indy shied from me slightly as I raised my voice; I dropped it quickly at her reaction. "My Kn' you know me better than any other, you have saved me from suffering at the hands of the sky people and the Na'vi. Can you not see that I do not belong to either of them? My hands which shape my world are Na'vi, scarred; my feet which carry me through it are 'human'. I am not a Child of Eywa, nor am I born of the Sky people! I am something else, something neither world wants!" I was yelling now, and realized the others looked to me. I turned from them, out over the sea. "Even if I wanted to I could not go back to the sky people. You heard Grace's words; they have burned and buried my body. I can never go back to what… or who I was. There is no place for me, even among the Na'vi. I am not Eywa's son. She did not make me, does not want me, this is why my bond does not work. This is why I loose myself, it is Eywa's anger, her punishment. -I am not wanted here.-" I silenced, looking out over the crashing waves and the far drop.

"You are wanted here." Kn'indy said quietly.

I looked to her then and held back the tears, "No, my Kn' only you want me here… and I do not know why you have chosen me of all our- … your people." Kn'indy's face suddenly became somber, her eyes hiding a deep pain. I froze when I saw it, and so quickly was it gone I quested if it was truly there. "My Kn'…" I whispered.

Kn'indy stopped reaching for me then, My Storm Rider, there is…" She wrapped her arms around herself, the soft glow of the lights on her body brightening in the darkening world around us. "…there is something you must know."

I looked to her so strongly, feeling a fear grip my heart. That was when we heard the sound of the Plane. The people came from the tent all looking up as the whine of the machine sailed over the trees, the long lights flashing over the ground and us, 'Dr. Grace Augustine!' a voice cried over the speakers. I should have recognized they were coming for her, I should have known they would seek her though she did not say they would, but the moment I saw the machine come over the trees, heard the loud howl of its 'engines' and was struck by the unnatural brightness… the storms rolled through me. The people were screaming, gun shots rang throughout, bodies moved everywhere. Sounds echoed, my vision blurred, lights swam before me. Grace was running beside me. "Oh god their shooting!" She said. I sucked in my breath, turning in confusion, I felt the bullet hit my leg, the shock of pain threw me to the ground. Grace was at my side, pulling me, I pushed her away.

"Run Grace! RUN!" And I too stood and was running. Running. Running!

…

Grace heard the Sampson clear the trees, and cursed herself for forgetting they would miss and search for her. She was too wrapped up in all that was happening, and the questions upon questions of the miracle. When she came out of the tent the Na'vi were swarming around their Ikran's ready to take flight and repel the invading sky people's beast. The chief was calling for her people to be calm, Tsu'tey was sneering, Grace assured them they were only searching for her- she had come to the Na'vi in secret and had not expected to be taken to their home. 'Dr. Grace Augustine!' The voice repeated over the speakers. And suddenly someone else was screaming; "Run Grace! RUN!" Grace turned seeing Kea'Peyral thrashing as if he had been shot, his eyes did not see, and suddenly he was running. A jolt of understanding hit her, a memory, he had said the exact same thing before his braid was cut… his mind was damaged, a part of his nervious system severed, that kind of trauma… he was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and relieving the nightmare of that day so long ago!

Grace wanted to follow him, even as she saw Kn'indy and two others give chase. But bows were being lifted, and the chief was shouting orders. Grace had no choice but to stay and try to calm the situation down before a fight began. Trudy was the pilot and though she tried to keep her distance, she had Wainfleet with her… and he enjoyed carnage. Grace tried to reassure the chief and ran out into the clearing waving her arms. The Sampson came close then, the search lights falling onto her as the people spread away from the Sampson's landing. Grace was forcibly pulled on by Wainfleet and the other Avatar, even as she protested and tried to tell them what she was doing. Wainfleet ordered them out of there and Trudy had to obey. The Sampson slowly lifted into the sky, even as Grace cried out and Kea'Peyral flew into the darkening jungle. She called out to him as he disappeared, saying his name over and over, swallowed by the sound of the Sampson's engines and the wind. As she gave in to enraged sobs, Trudy reported over the radio back to Hell's gate.

"Target acquired, negative collateral damage, no pursuit." she said.

…elsewhere her voice came in over a small radio. Two figures stood starring at one another, alone in a darkened office; one with livid white scars across the right side of his face, the other, rubbing his temples and starring at a floating paper weight more valuable then a years' salary. "…and they're sure?" The sitting figure finally said, meekly, not wanting to hear the answer.

"Labs already confirmed it was a hybrid body. I'd bet my left hand that's who she's sneaking off to see, and they ain't just chatting about the fine Pandora weather." Selfridge cupped his hands over his face at Quaritch's words. They were silent for a long while.

"…has there been any change in the body?"

Quaritch shifted, "Still comatose as a potato in a pickle jar." Selfridge leaned forward, staring blankly into a screen which showed a floating body lined with tubes and wires. His body.


	7. Chapter 7: She without Songs

**Chapter VII: She without Songs**

They flew through the jungles after him, Kn'indy, Txon'taw, and Ni'wins feet found foot holds easily, nearly dancing over the still ground. Only their purposeful breathing betrayed the effort it took to catch up with the unnaturally fast Kea'Peyral. They may have had trouble finding him again, such was his speed, but he was making enough noise to know he was only just ahead of them. They risked calling for him a few times, but he did not answer and instead changed course as if to avoid them, so now they ran in silence. They carried bows and a few arrows, but were more worried for he who carried none. They had never seen one of his storms take him this badly, not since the time at the sky people's home. They did not know the purpose of it, or what it meant, for he was once a sky person and to fall into this 'insanity' was new in many ways, but they knew he had a good heart and was worth finding.

Ni'win and Txon'taw did not have a very personal relationship with him, certainly not as deeply as Kn'indy did, but they had known her all her life and trusted her explicitly. Even as their hearts beat to catch up to him, they ignored the confusion which would slow them, and even trick them into loosing his trail. The jungles were deadly this far out at night, and the noise he was making was sure to attract curious predators, still they could not catch up to him. He was moving carelessly, creating a clear path of light and sound in his wake, but in his lost state he did not see the world around him. This they knew when he had shoved Kn'indy aside, calling her Grace and telling her to run. So she did, after him. Kn'indy most of all was running her hardest, her nostrils flared with the effort and she wasted no movement in trying to catch him. To her it was not even a question of why or how, merely when.

Twisting, diving, rolling, jumping, their hands found hold, their bodies moved in rhythm. Up, over, around, under, and through the mad chase carried out into the dark night cut by the fierce lights of his passing chaos. There was a loud crash then, and the hunters knew it was the far incline. In horror they came to the edge seeing Ke'Peyral rolling end over end down the steep way. Kn'indy paused only enough to find him again before she launched herself nearly into dead air before hitting the slope at a full run. The other two Na'vi hesitated only long enough to watch her feet hit the ground before they too were leaping. Now the wind rushed by their ears pulling their hair straight behind them, they barely had enough traction to turn, avoiding a thin tree, or treacherous roots seeking to ensnare and take their ankles. The fall would not be easily survived.

Kea'Peyral himself was having the worst of it, bouncing almost across the ground at some points, rolling sideways from the sheer force of slamming into something and continuing with momentum. They could clearly smell blood, fresh openings of his wounds and there was a greater fear of internal bleeding. The people were strong of body, Eywa had blessed her children with bones of stone, but even stones can crack and shatter. He cleared a swath of dark ferns, blazing through them in sudden light. His body twisted unnaturally, and then a final thrashing jump into darkened space. They heard the impact long before they reached him, and their concentration faltered for fear of him, but not enough to cause their own misstep. Each dove as he did, flipping to lessen the landing and avoid any impact to unseen trees from their speed. One by one they landed on spread hands and feet, tails straight and ears moving in all directions. They need not have sought long, he was already crying. They heard his voice a few feet away, and the sound of him crawling.

"Meeeediiic!" He wailed in English, "I'm hit, they're on our flank, I need suppressing fire!" Swiftly they came upon him, ducking low behind a large mushroom shape. He held an obviously broken arm, the elbow bent at the wrong angle, and his eyes were blacker than the night. "Get down, I've got hostiles on my nine!" He shouted in English, incomprehensible to them.

"My Storm rider, be still, be still." Kn'indy tried to sooth him, her breath heavy from worry. He half moaned, half screamed in agony. He whipped his head away from them;

"I'm out of Mana, the Dragon's going to breathe again!" He moaned. Kn'indy approached him but when she got within touching distance he hissed at her so vehemently blood flew from his mouth onto her. She stepped back from the sheer violence of it, before he fell back again and the tears strained him. His neck was tight, his hair disheveled, "I can't diffuse the bomb, the timer's at ten seconds!" he whimpered to no one. Slowly Txon'taw and Ni'win came up on either side of him, watching in fascination, pity and terror. He snapped his head to them rolling onto his side in their direction, "FIRE EVERYTHING!" and swiping at them. Kn'indy motioned for them to stay back, which they did, looking upon the madness of their friend with horror. However… Kn'indy showed no horror, her face was calm, though her eyes were pained. She tried again to near him, whisper soothing words. "I can't find your legs, I can't find you legs!" he wept.

"My Storm Rider, be still, all is well, all is safe." The two Na'vi watched her, trapped by the sight before them, that which they had never seen before.

"GRACE?" He screamed suddenly at Kn'indy, who paid no heed to his words, only slowly approached, whispering as if with a wounded animal. "I'm lost in the machine, lost in the machine, the lights are fading…" He panted, gritting his teeth hard. "There's no way out, there's no way out, oh mom, mommy, there's no way out, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry…" He looked at no one, his voice choking. Those who watched him felt their hearts sicken. Kn'indy was close enough now to touch him, and softly tried to rest her hands upon him. He flinched, but did nothing else. "Mommy, make it go away, make it go away. There a monster in my closet, the shadows have eyes, oh god the eyes are outside the fire." He babbled. Kn'indy paused only a moment to look to Txon'taw and Ni'win, trying to catch their gaze. They tore their eyes away to see her motion for them to step away. To go. She could see the reluctance in their eyes, but the pleading in her own needed no more convincing. Slowly, they stepped away, melting into the jungle to guard them.

"It's all burning, it's all just burning… everything's ash." He rasped, his skin shivering under her hands.

Kn'indy waited to make sure they were out of sight from them and leaned forward. "My Storm Rider, I am here, be still."

In silence the two figures crouched together, a small distance away, but not, far enough away as to be unable to see them clearly in the light of the forest. Ni'win, through some grin fascination, or perhaps nagging concern had stayed herself even though Kn'indy had asked for them to go with her eyes. She held Txon'taw with her, stopping him with no words as she continued to watch. For long moments Kn'indy waited as she though they went a greater distance away, and just past the point where they would no longer be able to see them she bent forward… and what Ni'win and Txon'taw saw next made them grip each other in silent shock. She leaned forward and his body suddenly stilled. His face gaped up, mouthing words, but only a whisper escaped his lips. "Eywa, why have you forsaken me?" And he said no more. Ni'win and Txon'taw waited in silence, feeling themselves close to each other, and brought closer by the strange experience they witness before them. They looked to each other then, and the mix of emotions that passed through them was definable by the width of a pin.

Their confused mash of thoughts had to wait however, as from all the noise, predators did come. Yet it was not a pack of Nantang, but Palulukan and her cub who stalked them. They heard the guttural hiss, the rattle of its quills and they turned in a new horror. Kn'indy heard the warning sound, Palulukan was not just hunting, but defending and teaching her child- the most dangerous creature on Pandora. Kea'Peyral starred into nothingness still. Kn'indy whispered, painfully, "No." And then it leapt. Na'vi warning cries rang out, harsh and high as Ni'win and Txon'taw took to the trees. Palulukan roared, scarcely inched behind them, ripping at the trunks with abandon and screaming rage for their evasion. The young one then came forward, hissing low and deadly, cautious in the presence of the seemingly helpless prey; the struggling Kn'indy. She pulled with all her strength upon him, under his arms, in a vain effort to move him to safety. "My Storm Rider, please come back to me, I need you to move, you must move!" She hissed between clenched teeth.

The young Palulukan was no bigger then a Na'vi, but it was pound for pound heavier and deadlier. Kn'indy released Kea'Peyral to grip her bow and it leapt with a piercing shriek! With a snap of its jaws it landed fully upon Kn'indy, knocking her backward into as her bow spared her from its finger long teeth. Her arrows fell uselessly aside as it took all her strength to keep her body away from the other claws which tried to gut her. It wrenched her side to side, positioning her for a better grip of its second paws, all the while gnawing on her bow and shredding it with its fore limb. Below them, Kea'Peyral stared without feeling at the death struggle directly above him. Palulukan stood over him even sometimes stepping on his body accidentally, which was why Kn'indy could give no ground. If she threw aside her bow it would have her, or worse, knock her aside and go for the easy meat below it. Kn'indy cried out from the strain, the struggle killing her inch by inch, if she could only reach an arrow! She had a chance of blinding it, or even killing it if she could get the shaft deep enough into the brain.

In the distance she heard the mother Palulukan uprooting trees and the positioning calls of Ni'win and Txon'taw as they fled its reaching grasp. It was tenacious, never sitting still long enough to allow a clean shot and ever harrying them to make them go higher, or move further across a branch. Kn'indy felt her left arm begin to give under the assault of the young Palulukan, its ferocity was not diminished by its youth and inexperience, but it did not know to stop chewing the bow and go for a better bite, perhaps the only thing which allowed her to continue the struggle. She could not risk letting go of even one hand to reach for an arrow, and it would not be long before the mother returned, the bow snapped, or her strength failed her. She had only one option, again she called to Kea'Peyral. "My Storm, please move! You must move!" He stayed still despite the struggle directly over him, eyes glazed, "You must move!" She again had to twist as the vicious claws sought her underbelly.

"My love, please! The arrow! You must reach! I can not!" She cried as tears fell from her eyes. It was hopeless, he would not hear her, he would die and she would follow him into Eywa's arms. "My love!" She gasped as the bow gave a sickening, fatal crack. Palulukan fell forward, no longer supported by the bow which snapped cleanly in half. It hit the ground clumsily and knocked Kn'indy back into a roll with its head, it roared in confusion and triumph readying itself to leap once more, unhindered! Kn'indy cried out, two arms came upwards, and suddenly the Palulukan felt an iron cord wrap around its neck. Yowling in confusion the young Palulukan tried to rear backwards, only to have the iron cord follow. Something was holding tightly to its neck, and then another band was around its waist. Kea'peyral tucked his head under its chin, wrapping himself around Palulukan in a death grip! Kn'indy stared in amazement, Palulukan hissed in confused rage, Kea'Peyral answered with a hiss of his own as he savagely bit into its neck with his small teeth.

Suddenly Palulukan flipped backwards, mystified by the thing clinging to him and biting him. It rolled, and craned its head trying to see what sank its teeth into it, hissing in impotent fury. Kn'indy was too stunned to react, then she noticed his useless left arm thrashing around with Palulukan and the world came screaming back to her. Plaulukan now started slapping the odd rider with its tail, and tried to claw the thing from its belly with each of its hands, but its claws found no deep purchase and even as they raked his back he still did not let go. Kn'indy shot forward, galvanized by the rolling melee she took in hand all of her arrows and leapt at Palulukan, plunging an arrow as deeply as she could into its flank. At this new source of pain Palulukan swiveled, slapping at Kn'indy with its tail, but still the crushing force beneath its neck tried to smother it, wrapping its body over its air holes and made moving more difficult. Its breathing came out in short gasps, and the confusion of this new experience was unnerving the young hunter. It made mistakes, like once more ignoring the standing Na'vi to try and claw the one from its belly.

Again a searing arrow stuck it flesh, this time into its neck. It released a hoarse gasp, and turned its attention back to the standing Na'vi! Ignoring the one on its belly, ignoring the choking pressure on its neck and over its nostrils, the Palulukan crouched to leap upon her. Swiftly Kea'Peyral released his legs and straightened his body like a rod, the impact of the upward force misdirected Palulukan's leap to the side like a car hitting a lever. Palulukan landed beside Kn'indy and tried to grasp at the now more accessible body which had finally let go, but in that instant Kn'indy was leaping with her broken bow in each hand. The two jagged shafts pierced Palulukan's largest eyes, biting deep. Driven with pain and a horrible cry, Palulukan spiraled in midair ripping itself away from the two Na'vi before slamming into a tree. It cried again, a high barking sound, a chirping sound of distress. It rolled clawing at the shards in its face, only serving to drive them in further, in its maddened state it bit at its own limbs and again shrieked a long distressed cry before curling into a stiff ball. Dead.

Kn'indy breathed heavily, her hands shaking. Kea'peyral lay beside her, stained with the blood of Palulukan and the deep gashes on his back. Out in the deep of the darkened jungle an enraged roar vibrated the very air, a cry of rage and sorrow so terrible it shook their bones. They heard the thunderous footsteps of the mother Palulukan returning. "My Kn', run." He spoke Na'vi once more, weakly.

Kn'indy looked to him, "No, my love we must move!"

Kea'Peyral shook his head, "I can move no more." He breathed wetly, the space around him grew dark with a spreading pool. The thundering footsteps and enraged roars grew closer.

"I will not leave you!" she gripped him.

"My Kn," He lifted his free hand, painting her face with blood as he touched her. "Go." He whispered.

Kn'indy's face contorted with pain; "Kea…" she shook her head.

"Go." he urged.

"NO!" she threw her hand back gripping her own braid and bringing it forward just as the Palulukan cleared the trees and looked around itself.

It noticed its fallen child first. With a sad, clipped yelp it sprang toward it. Its front legs took it gently in its paws, rolling it to the side as it licked it tenderly. Kn'indy and Kea'Peyral watched it, frozen. It shook its slowly stiffening babe and then ducked its nose to it. Nudging the child prompted no more movement, so it grew still. Then, raising its head high it roared with a depthless remorse unheard by many Na'vi. When the heart killing cry ending it ducked its head back to its child, and then slowly looked over to them. The quills on its neck shivered, a death rattle, as it unleashed a hiss of such cold hatred it could freeze the blood solid. Kn'indy reached her other hand up gripping Kea'Peyral braid, Kea'Peyral tried to push her clear, Palulukan leapt with all her claws and teeth for their flesh… an Ikran slammed into her side in mid air, shrieking challenge, mirrored by the war cry of the Olo'eytkan on her back!

Both animals fell to the side, but even as Palulukan leapt to its feet roaring in outrage and the Ikran spread wide its wingspan and answered with a roar of its own, a hail of arrows fell upon Palulukan. The war cry was answered by a hundred fold voices from the top of the slope, Palulukan was peppered by uncountable arrows as the cries flooded the low ground. Again and again the arrows came and Palulukan thrashed beneath them. The chief hooted raising her own bow as Palulukan reeled from the sheer pain and volume of poison flowing through it. It again roared, but this time hoarsely. It knew it stood no chance. With a finally roar it leapt away from the Ikran, back toward its fallen cub. Protectively, though it was outlined by the shafts on endless arrows, Palulukan curled around it, roaring in challenge at the Na'vi on the rise. No more arrows fell. It turned its head and roared in challenge to the Ikran and her rider; they did not answer, watching in respectful silence.

Finally Palulukan looked to the two Na'vi at the base of a tree, the ones who took her child from her. She glared at them for the longest time, almost as if she would still go for them, but she did not take her paws from her baby… and finally, her breathing faltered. Hoarsely she slipped down, pulling her dead child closer. She again made sure none neared them, shattering several arrows shafts as she fell to her side. With barely a whisper more, the light of her eyes faded, and her massive body finally stilled in the eternal stillness of death. … slipping from her Ikran the chief slowly came up to the bodies. She bowed then, on her knees and careless of further danger. The Na'vi on the hill made their way down, and surrounded them as well. Paying respects before attending to Kn'indy and Kea'Peyral. Txon'taw and Ni'win were among them. Encircled by Na'vi the Palulukan still starred at them all, her dead eyes no longer hating, only watching… as if to say: this was life. Where there should have been strength, where there should have been love and protection, there was failure and death. Look upon me, the mightiest of hunters, look upon me the greatest of fears and know I have died, know, I have lived.

…

The Na'vi removed their arrows in solemn ceremony, returned Kea'Peyral back to the village, and did not light the cook fires that night. All spoke in whispers, a hushed respect for the dead. Kea'Peyral was most silent of them all as he slept. Kn'indy had sealed and bandaged his wounds, seven great gashes stood out nearly symmetrical from the top of his shoulders and outward to his sides. Like the bones of Ikran's wings. With deep bruises along his lower spine from Palulukan's tail, his arm had been reset and the new damage from the trashing had nearly severed it. It was wrapped in bark and tied stiffly at his side but it was unlikely he would ever use it again. Kn'indy stayed by his side, even though she too suffered gashes on her thighs and belly from near misses from the lower claws of Palulukan. She hid her pain however, and looked after Kea'Peyral with tired eyes. Apart from them, Ni'win and Txon'taw sat together, looking at the tent Kea'Peyral slept in.

They too were shaken, with scrapes and bruises, but nothing so serious. They had led the mother off as best they could, until the death cry of the young tore it away from them. They then rallied their people who had come searching for the source of all the cries. It was mere luck they had arrived in time. Still, this was not why they sat silently. The memory of what they both had seen fully occupied their thoughts, far more then their recent escape from the jaws of death. Even now they dared not whisper to each other from the strangeness of it. Still, when it could no longer rest in her heart Ni'win spoke. "Did you see, as I saw?" She asked him finally. Txon'taw looked surprised by the sudden question, but answered just as quietly.

"If you mean the lights, yes. They were unnatural, nothing glows as that, not upon this world."

Ni'win looked to her knees which she hugged to herself, "Do you think it was… Eywa?" She said so softly Txon'taw almost did not hear.

He was silent for a long while before answering, "It shook my soul to look upon those lights, if it was not Eywa, I fear for our people…" Ni'win moved closer too him still. "We must tell the elders." He said flatly.

Ni'win was uncertain, "It is their secret to tell." she touched him.

Txon'taw looked at her firmly, "But it is our people who live in danger if we do not." Ni'win furrowed her brow, but said nothing more. Txon'taw looked back to the tent, and he sighed heavily. "We shall tell her then, that we saw. If she does not tell their secret which is hers, then we must." Ni'win closed her eyes, but did not disagree.

"It was beautiful…" she said into space. "…frightening, terrible, but… beautiful." Txon'taw knew she did not speak of the Palulukans.


	8. Chapter 8: She with Sorrow

**Chapter VIII: She with Sorrow**

Grace sat disillusioned by her console. She was spared accusations of insubordinate treasons by some mistaken assumption that she had gone off to do research and was kidnapped by the Na'vi. Wainfleet even confirmed he saw hostiles pick her up and carry her off. If that was the case though, why did they wait to send rescue so long? The distance to the village was not that far, especially by the Scorpions and they knew the location. Something else was going on, but she couldn't put her finger on it; she wracked her brain trying to figure out what their goal was, why they allowed her to intervene with the Na'vi. What could they possibly want her to continue making contact for? Of course, it was true they did want her Avatar program to succeed, as it was their last and best hope in getting the cooperation of the natives without stock-plummeting scandal and genocide but there had to be something more.

She knew the RDA was far more interested in the money making possibilities then anything their research could bring them, though accolades and such for the science did increase consumer confidence in the company and therefore its backing. Miles away from earth though, what did they really care about the political interrelations between the tribes? They could always report whatever they wanted, there was no government watch dog here, Quaritch was just another heartless merc like anybody else, a bought man, so why w-... Slowly Grace sat up in her chair, "A bought man…" she repeated. Her mind had venomously conjured the idea though she knew his loyalties lied with the military far more then it did Parker or the corporations, but it was true the RDA were practically cut off from accountability here in so long as no one knew the absolute truth about what was happening. They could spin any detail they wanted if it weren't for Grace and her science team and the military presence here. Trained soldiers would not blindly follow the orders of the corporation no matter how much money was thrown at them, but…

Grace began accessing the terminal in front of her. She brought up the lists of every ship for the last few space drops, bringing up the personnel manifesto for each and comparing the 'occupation' entry for each one. She narrowed her eyes in focus and began ticking off one by one and categorizing them, her eyes swiftly grew wider and wider, half way between the next list she looked around herself in paranoia. Then she took out a pad and paper and began writing. For many long hours she waded through the logs, for many hours she spec'ed the numbers, did the math, and made comparisons of all the data she recognized. She knew they could always see what she had accessed, so she made sure never to electronically specify anything in particular, but wrote down everything she needed and then extrapolated from the current sums and trends which made her stand up in astonishment, dropping her pen.

The RDA had been slowly phasing out actual trained military presence for years, replacing them with mercenaries or those soldiers who were less sympathetic toward the Na'vi and known for loyally following Quaritch. If this continued, Grace and her team would be the last bastion to keep the RDA military applications in check… and if they could turn one of her team, they could steam roll all of Pandora with no one to stop them. Grace laughed to herself, putting a hand on her lower back and one on her forehead. It couldn't be true, it sounded like a huge conspiracy. Mercenaries were just cheaper than military, it was cost effective, and of course they would rather have men who followed Quaritch loyally, why would they want dissent and disloyalty when lives were on the line? Grace calmed herself down. She couldn't confront Selfridge with this, there was plausible deniability and he'd come to the same conclusions she had. Quaritch would just use it as an excuse to get her psych-evaluated, she could hear him now, "I think the strain of Pandora has finally gotten to our dear doctor."Grace mumbled to herself.

No, if what was happening was what she thought was happening, she would need stronger evidence. Especially if she wanted to prevent whatever they planned to do once they had free reign. The only way to hamper the RDA was to hit them where it hurt, the wallet. That meant swaying public opinion, and that meant hard evidence the RDA was less than noble toward the Na'vi or its employees. Grace sat down heavily. She didn't have time for this kind of thing; she was a scientist, this corporate espionage bullshit wasn't her field. She couldn't even nail them with the incident; even if "No Name" wanted to press charges they could blame the transfer phenomenon on the Na'vi for cutting his braid or lack of safety protocol and on top of that they would be given special accommodations for allowing him to keep RDA property in the form of the Avatar. Grace rubbed her temples.

No, if she wanted to prove there was any possible wrong doing she would need the Na'vi to collect the evidence on site and she would definitely need his help if she wanted to do that. She could piece together, with the information she received about the scout team near the Ikran peoples land that they were looking into something near that area. They would be the best spies to find and record further unsanctioned activity. The Na'vi had to be contacted and asked if they were allowed to mine the area, specifically because it was their land as there was no defined borders. Therefore everything was assumed to belong to the Na'vi and the RDA had to ask permission, and receive it, if they wanted to do any expansion. If she could prove they were scouting and better yet, mining, without the Na'vi permission to do so - she could raise eyebrows with the watch dog agencies back home and strengthen her own position. Grace took another swig of coffee, now cold.

Since when did she have to start worrying about positioning? She only wanted to do her research, not be dragged into the political machinations or ethical managing of the massive RDA. Still, she _was_ in the best position to do something about it and if she didn't intervene on the Na'vi behalf, no one would be able too. Well, whatever she planned to do she had to do it fast. A new shipment of soldiers was already on its way to Pandora, containing more mercenaries and morally loose soldiers hand selected by the RDA. She had a few scientists and techs coming with it, but she didn't think any of them would be much use should the RDA decide to do something drastic. Grace's breath caught. What if they were already doing something drastic? She knew it was easier for the RDA to ask for forgiveness instead of permission, especially if they were already entrenched in mining operations.

They would gladly take the ire of the Na'vi and the heat from the public if they were already raking in more Unobtanium, they would have more to loose from not continuing instead of losses from stock or sway. They could always then tote the demand for unobtanium as people wouldn't stop buying what it supplied. Once they got it and did it, it was done, and no one would be able to really hold them accountable to any meaningful degree. Grace stood, ripping the research from her notepad and folding it into her pocket. It was already possible they were doing something and trying to hide it from her team. If they were afraid she would find out about it, that meant it was still in an early stage which she could interrupt, otherwise they wouldn't bother to keep her happily distracted until she got too close. Grace swiftly left the lab, heading to the link chambers to find Max, she trusted him more than anyone and she had to confer with someone. She found him sitting at the computer terminals which displayed the brain activity for the drivers still in operation.

"Max you got a minute?" She said nonchalantly.

Max looked up from his screen and smiled, "Sure Grace," He said, and handed the monitoring off to the techs around him. Grace went to a conjoined room and Max followed. Once Grace was sure they were sufficiently alone, she launched into an explanation that overwhelmed Max, along with showing him her research. Max was suitably stunned by her revelations and talk of conspiracies, but he didn't disbelieve her. "Hey you know… this might explain why…" he said to himself.

"Why what?" Grace narrowed her eyes.

Max looked up absently, "We've been setting up and getting a lot of scattered reports and heat signature tracking of the animal life on Pandora right?" Grace nodded for him to continue, it wasn't her field after all, she was a botanist. She didn't follow the zoological side of things more then she had to as head of the Avatar department. "Well recently we've had migrations, Hexapedes, Titontheres, and Thantors all moving out of a specific area and closer to Na'vi encampments. We thought it was just natural cycles or something, but it could be something else."

He looked to Grace and she caught on, finishing for him with a mild incredulous slow nodding of her head, "Like they were driven out."

. . .

When Kn'indy startled awake, not realizing she had fallen asleep, the first thing she noticed was his eyes watching her. He stared at her with a kind of half smile, his eyes looking at her but not actually seeing her. She could tell he was thinking, her sudden waking made his eyes focus clearly and the smile expanded into a genuine one. "My Kn'." he spoke Na'vi.

Kn'indy smiled to him, "My love, are you well?" She sat up, beginning to check his bandages.

His hand stayed her own, "I am now." He gripped her fingers, interlocking their hands. "You are the strongest, bravest woman I know." He smiled, and his useless arm beside him budged, as if he wanted to hold her. "I see you." He said simply. Kn'indy felt her face split as she could not hold back the smile, yet in her heart the familiar pain whispered to her of guilt.

She gripped his hand in return, "I see you." She answered, _"But you do not truly see me._" She thought. Kea'peyral, her Strom rider, her love, smiled distantly. "My love, I-I, I must tell you…" She began, but his eyes fluttered gently and his fingers loosened slightly. Kn'indy felt a small jump of fear within, but saw he only fell to sleeping. He was still exhausted from his wounds, it would take a great while for them to heal. Again. Kn'indy sighed deeply, but did not disturb him, she was simply glad he survived. His uncanny ability to continue living, for his body to go on, surely it was the work of Eywa… no other to the memory of the clan had withstood so much. When she saw that he was safe and dreaming, she left him. She had work to do for them both, for her clan. The hunters were already out, and then some, for it was a great mystery to find Paulukan with her cubs so near the Na'vi village. She could stand to wait until he was well enough before she…

The Ikran's chattered and fussed noisily as Kn'indy approached the sea side. She would first bathe the stress and wounds she had received the night before, or they would hinder her more on the hunt. She passed many of the large huts like Toruk looking to the horizon, and taller then even him. She smiled as the distant birds twirled and danced around the great arches out at sea. She forgot her worries as the sea breeze caressed her skin and the smell of the ocean filled her with content. She dipped into the water without fear, the Na'vi long ago set up nets to protect them and their children from sea bound predators. Even now there were a few fishermen on watch for dangers, just in case, as they cast their nets. As she went about cleaning herself, and her clothing in the brisk waters of the Pandoran eastern sea Ni'win called to her. She waded in to join her, their privacy respected by the other Na'vi who bathed their children or clothing a distance away from them. "I see you, Kn'indy, is he well?" She smiled.

Kn'indy returned the greeting, "He is as well as one can be in his state." She half sighed. There was weariness in her shoulders from the awkward sleeping position and in her legs from the running.

"The healers say he shall live, if he and Eywa will it, and as they have said so before I am sure he will recover." Kn'indy gently dipped her braid then, the voice in her heart whispering slightly louder as she touched it. "…I, have something to say." Ni'win started. Kn'indy looked to her curiously as she lifted water to her hair and gently squeezed her braid free of dirt. Ni'win hesitated, her sharp eyes and angular cheeks giving her the appearance of a blade. She shaved her head as most warriors did, leaving a long trail. "Txon'taw and I both have something to say." She added. Kn'indy looked at her patiently as she dipped the back of her head fully under the waves. The water was warm and felt soothing across her ears. "but I do not wish to say this where others may hear." Ni'win said bluntly. Kn'indy froze.

She was hesitating, and looking around her as the others bathing near by. They were well within hearing range. Txon'taw and Ni'win had something to say to her where no others would hear? Kn'indys golden eyes widened. They knew. Or worse, they saw. Kn'indys lips tightened. Ni'win, finally seeing that Kn'indy understood, finished bathing quickly, "Fly across the close trees when you are done, we shall be waiting." She waited for Kn'indy to acknowledge she understood before wading away. Kn'indy sunk down so just her nose remained above the water line. They knew. They knew or saw and were going to confront her. This meant they had not told anyone, and would probably ask what it meant. Kn'indy shivered despite the warmth in the sea. She was not ready for the others to know, and she did not know what she would do if her Storm rider should find out.

…

Grace and Max went over geographical maps and topographical data about migrations. It was not an uncommon thing for them to do so, as they were a part of the science team so they discussed it openly thought they hid their true intent. "Could it have something to do with pollination?" Grace queried absently in an effort to further hide their actions. They were extrapolating, retracing, and configuring a pattern of movement for the last few days for all fauna in the area. The Banshee hunters made no change, nor did the Titanotheres who moved their herds slowly, but the Hexeped and Thanators who passed through the area commonly, suddenly stopped doing so, giving a large section a wide berth. However it was the Viper wolves who proved most useful, showed the first signs of grouping in a specific area. They then suddenly repositioned themselves, now they were commonly hunting and dening near a specific area, a large circle. Over time this dwindled, and then the dens evaporated altogether.

The exact same behavior they had seen before when they had a ready food source, then the food source proved too difficult, and then they were wiped out was what happened when they first landed and created Hellsgate and when they first started to mine. Scouts, workers, and security entered the area first and were easy prey as they set up security barriers, once those were up however the attacks lessened to picking off whoever they could, and once the whole mini compound was operational, no Viperwolf could get near it and live. It was undeniable; they were starting a new mine somewhere else. They recorded al the evidence they could, and made back up copies, covertly as if it was everyday business as usual. Once they had a secure cache of evidence, circumstantial thought it was, they were able to begin making plans to try and get more. There was no hard evidence that it was actually a mine yet, or if the disturbance was human.

There were a lot of MIA or KIA profiles of soldiers, mercs and techs, but they had no way to prove they were killed helping to start a mine project and not just on normal patrol or maintenance. They had to get real evidence that mining was happening. The first step was to inform the Na'vi of what was happening and get them to help collect more evidence, the second was to use the threat of the evidence to prevent the mining and diplomatically stave off human and Na'vi conflicts, the third step would be to actually send the evidence back so the public could be informed and the government/civilian watch dogs could start raising eyebrows at what was _really_ happening on Pandora. Close scrutiny of the RDA would follow, and Grace hoped, so would a tighter leash; but only after they got the evidence and support from the Na'vi that the mining was unauthorized. To do that, they had to get back to the Na'vi, under Quaritch's nose.

Wainfleet was always watching, and Grace didn't know if she could trust their pilot, Trudy Chacon. She was an acquaintance at best; friendly on the missions, and happy to do her job, but Grace had no idea where her real loyalties lay. The Avatar department had already suffered enough budget cuts and personnel shortages to keep Graces' options limited to the few senior members of her staff she trusted, those who had been with the program all along. She knew she could count on them, but she also knew they were being watched just like she was. If any of them did anything too obvert, they might find themselves being questioned and most likely charged with espionage, insubordination, treason or at the least undermining the operations on Pandora. The fastest way to deal with someone was to bring up the possibility of a trial or a formal inquiry. While under suspicion they would _have_ to be sent back home to work it out, meaning six years without their interference.

Grace couldn't afford loosing six years again, and she knew the charges had to be serious before they were actually considered. Being head of the Avatar program offered her some protection of course, but so did being the head representative of the RDA and head of security. It was possible Selfridge and Parker were just puppets of the RDA, and the true back alley business was happening back on earth, but that didn't mean they couldn't be influenced here on Pandora to do something… morally grey. They were a long way away from home, and their presence here was a huge investment. No, Grace couldn't take Parker or Quaritch down, and even if she could it wouldn't fix the problem. The orders were coming from Earth itself. If she wanted to throw a wrench in the works she needed to somehow hit them back home, and hard. Parker and Quaritch would be brought into line if she could strike at the top, the Board, the investors. She had to reach them if she wanted to change anything on Pandora.

For a moment Grace wondered how deeply and loyally Selfridge and Quaritch were into the whole mess. Parker was a sleaze ball but he wasn't totally devoid of conscience. Grace had worked with him for years and he arrived on Pandora purposefully, he wasn't a blood thirsty monster, just cold and distant from the reality. It was all just business to him, he was willing to find peaceful solutions if he could… there was a possibility Grace could reason with him. Quaritch however was a different story. She knew full well the man was there to get a job done, and that meant blood and steel. He didn't care about profits, or consumer confidence. He was there for service and glory to the homeworld, and he saw Pandora itself as one big obstacle to that glory. He didn't even hate the Na'vi as a cultural people, they were just an annoyance until they became the enemy. Something they hadn't fully committed to yet, so neither did he. There wasn't cruelty waiting there behind those livid scars, no, it was more a twisted sense of duty that drove him… single mindedly.

The only way Grace could reach him was with a gun or through Selfridge, who he had to answer too. He followed the chain of command, and orders; he was a disciplined man of his word. Even if he was insanely misguided. Grace had to set about the task of reaching the Na'vi, trusting Max's judgment and her teams' dedication to the science and the world. She wouldn't let the incident which happened so long ago ever happen again, not out of ignorance or lack of awareness to her surroundings. She would have to struggle with Selfridge and Quaritch as obstacles if she planned to set herself against the RDA and safeguard humanities' future on Pandora. Grace tapped a carton and popped a cigarette to her lips. Max looked at her quizzically but she just sighed, and lit the edge with her newly acquired lighter.

"Pawned it off some soldiers." She said coughing, as the smoke filled her lungs for the first time. Max didn't say another word, frowning in understanding, even as the smell assaulted his nostrils. Grace puffed away feeling her hands lightly stop shaking. At least someone out there was definitely on her side, even if he didn't want his own name anymore. He was ingrained in the Na'vi clan, they trusted him and unless something marred that trust, she knew he would help her help them. She just knew, name or not, he would help her anyway he could. Grace looked off into the distance as she thought back, memories from long ago filling her mind and washing over her. There was much she had to prepare for.

…

Kn'indy stood with Txon'taw and Ni'win, far from Na'vi ears. The two Na'vi were both waiting expectantly for Kn'indy to reply after they told her of what they both saw. She was terrified of them, not because of what the clan may do to her, but because of what they may do to him. He was her responsibility, she had saved his life and carried a secret from him so terrible she did not think he would look at her again if he knew. Finally Txon'taw straightened his chin, "What do you two plan to do?" he prompted.

Kn'indy wrapped her arms around herself, "I-I will wait until he is well and we shall speak about it." The voice nagged louder then ever, so they didn't suspect-

"Does he even know?" Ni'win asked quietly, Kn'indy froze.

"Know?" She said tensely.

Ni'win gave her a strange look, "What the lights mean?" she said uncertainly.

Kn'indy looked relieved, "No we-" but then Ni'win's eyes bulged.

"Does he know you…?" She left it floating unspoken. Txon'taw looked to her like it was the strangest question ever spoken, but Kn'indy's reaction of shock which she quickly tried to suppress confirmed and shocked the other Na'vi to their core. "You-!" Ni'win shouted, her words failing her. Txon'taw looked absolutely stricken.

Kn'indy turned away from them in shame, even as she begged them not to tell, "Please, you can not tell him, he will never look at me!" She whimpered.

Ni'win shook her head in disbelief, "How could you?"

"I was forced!" Kn'indy cried defensively. "He would have died!"

Ni'win covered her mouth. Txon'taw looked disgusted and showed it in his voice, "Better to die then bond with one he does not know, without even knowing!"


	9. Chapter 9: The Hunter Falls

**Chapter IX: The Hunter Falls**

The camp was a-bustle when the three Ikrans landed where they usually did not, screeching with agitation as Txon'taw , Ni'win and a pleading Kn'indy all erupted into the center of the dwellings. Txon'taw and Ni'win marched determinedly to the place of the elders and the Olo'eyktan met them calmly, though with interest as she spoke with Tsu'tey who was set to return to his people. Kn'indy was pulling Txon'taw, begging him to stop, but he shrugged her off almost viciously. Ni'win would not look at her. Txon'taw paid his respects to both the seated Na'vi, but did not wait for a reply as he began. "Olo'eyktan, there has been a great wrong among the Ikan people of the Eastern Sea." He nearly spat. Kn'indy was standing beside him, trying to stop his words without touching him, now simply repeating, 'Please, please, please.' In a quiet whisper.

Neither Txon'taw nor Ni'win paid her mind, "This one," she motioned violently to Kn'indy who then silenced. "Has made the bond with one who did not choose it!" At her words Kn'indy simply hugged herself, closing her eyes tightly.

Tsu'tey was suitably stunned, almost open mouthed but the Olo'eyktan was calm in her judgment, "Is this true?" She asked simply. Kn'indy didn't answer at first. She stood still as stone, pain carved upon every feature. Many Na'vi had since gathered, and she didn't want ant any of them to see her, shrinking into herself. Olo'eyktan again spoke in the same calm, authoritative tone. "Is this true."

"Yes." Kn'indy said, her voice dead.

As the words left her lips, she finally admitted to herself what she had done. A sob escaped her without sound, without tears, only a wracking of the body. There was a terrible hush among the people, pity, outrage, disbelief, all silent. Olo'eyktan closed her eyes, in shame, "Who have you done this to?"

"My Storm Rider." she answered, her voice full in regret. Olo'eyktan stood; Tsu'tey remained seated though he was filled with outrage and disgust. These were not his people, he had no say here. A deep frown settled on his face, yet he still took this opportunity to learn the wisdom of the Ikran Peoples' chief.

She moved behind Kn'indy, directly up beside her. "Come." Her voice was hard, allowing no questioning and she moved beyond her. Kn'indy followed without hesitation and the Ikran people moved aside for them, creating a corridor of somber faces and ridged bodies. Kn'indy could feel every one of their eyes upon her, and she kept her head down. The Tsahìk waited for them in the tent with Kea'Peyral. He was barely conscious, his eyelids fluttering as a fever had him. Kn'indy was shocked to see him so, but she could not bring herself to run to him, to ever touch him again. "Look upon him, Kn'indy." Olo'eyktan said, "He fights again for his life. A life you have tainted." Kn'indy's hands covered her mouth, seeking to dig inside and pull out the wet sob which stuck in her throat. "If he wakes again, you will tell him what you have done and he shall decide your punishment. Until such time, you shall not fly with your Ikran, you shall not hunt. The People will suffer for your crime for many days. You will go to the place of shame in our hearts; none shall see you until you have pulled this poison from the heart of the people."

She said her words curtly, yet there was not total rejection in her tone. She, and all the people, expected her to make right what had happened and perhaps when she had done so, perhaps, she would be seen among them again. The Tshaik spoke in a hushed tone. "He is very weak Kn'indy, you will pray to Eywa with me for him, and for yourself." And with that no others spoke; she went and kneeled down beside the Tshaik, bowing her head. Nothing else need be said. Except. By Txon'taw and Ni'win.

"Olo'eyktan." Txon'taw began, "There is more."

All looked to him now, but Kn'indy voice, still full with sorrow, yet strong in purpose interrupted him. "Not until he is well." She asked it of them, but in such a way as to honor the wronged Kea'peyral. To let him be able to defend himself from whatever they spoke next. This and only this stilled Txon'taw and Ni'win's tongues. They looked to the Olo'eyktan and her to them, then Kn'indy, and she nodded. With that they all slowly disbursed. Tsu'tey had watched the whole ordeal with quiet respect. As far as he was concerned she should have been sent away, an outcast banished to find mercy among another tribe with the mark of a criminal upon her always after. But he saw the wisdom in the Olo'eyktans' words. They could not confirm for certain if the bond was against the dreamwalkers' will and they did not know if the Dreamwalkers' laws were the same as the people. The Sky people were strange beings and their ways were strange as well; who knew what punishment there was for rape such as this?

So until the dreamwalker was well enough to answer these questions, Kn'indy would be made to regret her crime under the eyes of her people. She would long have to toil under the direct service of the Tsahik, and thus under the eyes of Eywa. But what most interested him was the other two Na'vi's words that there was more to tell. His tone was fearful. Tsu'tey would have left that day with his band of Pa'li riders, but now he was not certain if he should. Whatever he had to say concerned the dreamwalker, and if it made him afraid to speak of it, there was something for his people to fear. If his people needed fear it, then perhaps the Omaticaya would fear it too. So he decided to stay, and wait until the dreamwalker lived or died. Then he would hear of this fearful thing which struck dread in the mind of the strong Na'vi hunter.

…

Grace was outright exhausted. Sneaking around, making secret pacts and watching for surveillance, she wasn't use to this spy crap. She had tried to make sure the actions of her team weren't overt, or for that matter too covert, to avoid suspicion. She waited until late at night when all the Avatars were bedding down, and thus the noise level inside the little cabin was a constant chatter of excited researchers discussing their finds for the day, technobable-jargon to any military ears. This was when Grace nonchalantly approached several of her drivers and through the excuse of training their Na'vi spoke to them about her plans, using words which sounded like simple genus names for flora and fauna to illustrate her evidence and her points. She had already, as the suggestion and recommendations of Max, swayed a few of the drivers who went on explorative topographical studies. This gave her advance scouts, foot soldiers, literally, who could aid her mission for evidence on foot.

The next people she was able to sway were simple zoologists and botanists like herself, they could back up her claims in court if it came to it with expert opinions on the migrations and habits of the wildlife on Pandora. She wasn't able to sway everyone however, and those few skeptics were respectful enough to keep silent about Grace's plans. Especially with the badgering by the others to keep quiet for the good of Pandora. Grace had a total of five trusted people on her side when the week of cloak and dagger nonsense was done with. Not a whole lot, and the time it took to sway them was more then usual due to their learned perspectives sometimes taking a great deal of academic and philosophical argument to convince- not to mention all the work she had to do for her own studies- but it was still enough for immediate needs. She couldn't waste anymore time getting more people, she had no idea how close Selfridge was to completing the mining expansion project, if that's even what it was. She then set about giving her little force the task of contacting the Ikran People of the Eastern Sea, specifically, the one they knew as Kea'Peyral.

This was, of course, easier said then done since they had to slowly begin incorporating missions nearer and nearer to the Ikran peoples' lands without arising suspicion. The best they could hope for was to get near enough, and cause enough activity in the area to catch the attention of the people and hope they would investigate. Grace also tried sending out missions near the Omaticaya so a message could be passed on through them to the Ikran people… but the Omaticaya would not see the 'dreamwalkers' nor let them near their land. They did not trust the sky people very well after the incident and there was something else going on that the Omaticaya would not speak of. Something having to do with learning more about the sky people and the Dreamwalkers before the Omaticaya would trust them near their lands again. Needless to say it was a tense second week that Grace hadn't made any headway in contacting the Na'vi nor discovering what it was the RDA was actually doing. This was why she was exhausted.

Grace puffed on her third cigarette; she felt she had been pretty damn stealthy, but she wasn't getting any results for all her hard work. On top of this she was worried about No name. What had he been doing all this time? What were the Ikran people doing? Why hadn't they tried to contact any of the science teams Grace had sent out? Grace let out a gray sigh into the air, the quiet buzz of her work station lulling her into a rhythm of thought she used to contemplate her research and find speculative answers to possibilities. The only thing she could come up with was another drastic move of going to see the Ikran people herself. But if she did that she was sure they would know she was onto to them and ev- Grace paused. Suddenly she started laughing to herself. Of course! Was she stupid or what?

If she let slip the fact she was investigating but in a way that made it look like she knew exactly what was going on, they would rush to complete whatever it was they were doing and in their hurry, make mistakes. They would lead her right too it! Grace launched herself from her chair, she didn't need to know everything to make their paranoia work for her. She immediately went and began accessing her computer, double backing on her research from earlier only this time fully electronically to make it look like she had only just now began to put it together. She waited a sufficient amount of time to give the impression that she was conflicted by the data, then printed out copies of her findings, leaving some hidden in case they started work on debunking what she had, and marched directly to Selfridge. The fact he was waiting for her in his office, with Quaricth coincidentally hovering near by, confirmed her suspicion they were watching her computers. The minute she slammed down the papers and began speaking she could tell they knew exactly what she was going to say."What the hell is this?" she demanded.

Parker raised his hound dog eyes at her, "Looks like papers to me, doc."

"Don't get smart with me Parker, what the hell is going on?"

"I thought you scientist liked smart people." he sighed while picking up the papers and shuffling through them. "What am I looking at?"

Grace didn't move from her half cocked position in front of his desk, "Ever since this project started the RDA has been slowly phasing out the military presence and replacing them with mercenaries. Soldier presence percentage is less then half of what it was when the whole thing began. Why is that?"

To his credit Parker actually looked somewhat mystified, as if this wasn't what he expected her to say. "Well, Mercs aren't as well trained, but they cost less…" he began somewhat confused.

Grace realized then he might not have been aware of the power shift happening around him so she quickly shifted subjects. "Okay then explain to me why there's been increased mining activity on the eastern bank." She said smartly. Bingo. Parker's eyes flew up to her, and Quaritchs' complete lack of reaction was reaction enough to tell her he was hiding something.

"Mining activity? Who said anything about mining activity?" Parker tried to laugh it off, looking to Quaritch for assistance.  
"Cut the crap parker, I've got biological and topographical evidence, and the Na'vi have been complaining for days." At that Parker's laughter died, she was right in that too, he had no idea if the Na'vi had really seen what was going on, but that didn't matter as long as he didn't know for certain they _hadn't_.

Parker kept his poker face though, and slowly put the papers down, "The natives are restless, and you come to me? They think some reconnaissance missions are destructive because they bend a few blades of grass an-an-an, and suddenly, we're mining hundreds of feet in the ground! Oooh!" Parker dramatically shivered, shaking his hands. "Isn't it your job to smooth negotiations and contact with the locals?"

Grace was impressed, he wasn't going to admit anything, and was even trying to pass the buck for the Na'vi's supposed complaints. "Reconnaissance missions? For what?" Grace said unbelieving.

"That's RDA classified; need to know." Quaritch finally spoke, tilting his head as if wanting her to challenge him.

"Classified my ass; if you want me to explain to the Na'vi what's going on, on their land, so your people don't get turned into pin cushions I need to actually _know what's going on_." Grace said emphatically. Parker stuck his jaw out to the side in perturbed thought.

Quaritch leaned forward, "You're asking me to give away company secrets because the savages got ants in their jock straps?" He leaned toward her with his arms crossed. "Whose side are you on Doctor?"

Grace didn't look at him even as she stared directly at Parker, "The side of not getting everybody killed." she said flatly.

"And that would be my job." Quaritch nodded.

"Oh really? I thought smoothing things over with the natives was my job." She crossed her own arms, throwing a hip out to the side.

Parker looked to them both as Quaritch smiled dangerously, daring her to looking him in the eyes. He swiveled in his chair back and forth a bit then once more came between them. "Tell them we're only looking for suitable future real-estate for travel post bases. Have to explore the rest of Pandora sometime right? It'll save on fuel to have guarded pit stops. We're just taking soil samples for ground stability, and of course the possibility of mining comes up, but that's not why we're there." Parker said finally.

Grace though about pushing him harder, but didn't want to press her luck, "Without asking the Na'vi's permission?" she chanced.

"Well we aren't putting anything down yet, so technically we aren't claiming anything and have nothing to ask for. You get me?" he shrugged, "Besides, they seemed busy enough keeping hold of whatshisname who went crazy in my compound."

Grace noted the change in subject but decided to allow it since she basically had them where she wanted and she needed them to think she was convinced, "You're talking about a friend of mine, and the Na'vi aren't holding him. He isn't a hostage." Grace replied.

"So he's there of his own free will, is he?" Quaritch piped up suddenly.

Grace looked at him, taken back by the sudden victorious implication in his voice, "He lost his memory during the incident, and suffers from PTS because of it. The Na'vi are just looking after him until he-"

"Remembers which team the home team is?" Quaritch interrupted her.

Grace smiled at him, "We're on their planet Quaritch, remember? Here, they _are_ the home team."

Quaritch sneered slightly, but countered quickly, "So when do you think they'll _let_ us bring him in for debriefing? He's still got RDA property if you've forgotten." Grace looked at him, and then to Parker incredulously.  
"Which the company is prepared to let him keep if all else fails, but he's right, it would be best if he came in. Don't you think he'd like to know who he really is?" Parker shrugged. Grace was backpedaling without trying to confirm any kind of blame on his interactions with the Na'vi, so much so she didn't quiet catch the meaning behind the glance from Quaritch and Parker's sudden oblivious poker face.

Grace narrowed her eyes, but then jumped on the opportunity, "Well I can bring him in, if you really wanted that." She said calmly. "You'd have to let me approach the Na'vi and naturally I'd have to make sure they understood what was happening on their land before I could talk to him and convince him about it though. Shouldn't take more then a day or two if I stay overnight." She leaned with both hands on his desk, withholding the smug satisfaction in her voice. "That is of course, if you _want_ me to do my job." Parker and Quaritch looked like their pants were suddenly too tight, but Quaritch alone didn't let it touch his face.

Parker sat stock still, but being backed into a corner as he was, he didn't really have much choice. "Two days, one night. You'd better be out of there, with him willingly following you, before nightfall of the second day." He didn't have to add the 'or else' it was well implied in his tone.

Grace however, ignored it and cheerfully smiled, "Wow Parker that was almost biblical." Then she turned and walked out, leaving the papers on his desk and a steel-faced Quaritch stabbing her with his eyes. Grace made her way quickly back to her department, she had to move quickly because she knew that was exactly what they were doing with her every step. The first thing she had to do was get a chopper out to the village, from there she could lead a band of people to collect hard evidence. She had no doubt they would be sending scorpions to the site and the Na'vi would be able to find where they went easily, if they were aware they were coming.

…

Quaritch immediately took Grace's place as she left. Parker waited only a few moments as the soldier leaned against his desk, jaw set tight and eyes demanding. "What's the status?" he asked.

Quaritch smirked, "Twenty thousand more feet and the mine will officially be too large to abandon."

"How close are they to setting the charges?" he mulled his chin some more.

"Should be ready to blast in one day, twelve hundred hours sharp."

Parker drummed his fingers once then picked up the papers she had left on his desk again, "Get it done by tomorrow morning." he said without looking up.

Quaritch smiled like a shark that came upon a sinking tanker full of chickens, "I'll see to it personally."


	10. Chapter 10: The Rider Falls

**Chapter X: The Rider Falls**

Ten moons and suns passed; Kea'peyral's fever broke, but infection of the deep gashes on his back was problematic. They healed well enough, leaving great scars, like the bones of Ikran wings, but his arm would take far longer. It was tightly wrapped in bark, and hooked at his side with a strap around his neck. The fever came and went, cruel delirium called for Kn'indy, his love, his life. She kneeled by his side the entire time. There were moments where he was nearly lost, moments they were sure he was no longer with them yet suddenly came to breathing again. It was the greatest punishment she could ever receive. So wracked with worry, a shadow fell upon her, like the gaunt of one dying. Two there were injured within the tent, one of body, the other of heart. Yet the people could not pity her. They could not see her, for the great wrong she chose. Nor did they ask her reasons, or taunt her for it. They simply went about as if she was not there. She was the last to eat of the meals, a small bowl left for her which she could only eat once she had fed Kea'Peyral and always the Tsahik watched her.

When Eywa finally spoke to them, it was through the tortured cries of the Dreamwalker. He spoke in two voices of two worlds, mixing in and out, in and out, like a demon. His eyes clouded, a sick yellow, and his skin paled so much his scars vanished. But by that night, the last of the fever left him and he rested well. Two days thence, he finally, blessedly began to recover. The gold of his eyes, though now mellow, came back. But… this sickness was not without consequences. Though it did not eat away at his body, it took from him the color of his skin; now he was much paler, though around his scars the blue that should have been over his entire body, lined them, making each mark underlined and bold against his body. Two moons more and his strength and fullness of mind finally returned to him. He was smiling weakly when he sat up, asking for Kn'indy who waited outside, bowed upon her knee. Olo'eytkan called for the truth to be known, and the Na'vi gathered.

Confused, Kea'Peyral was led outside and sat upon the ground. Olo'eytkan then called for Kn'indy who came before him. The somber faces of all the Na'vi around them, told Kea'Peyral to keep still, and he did so, looking at all of them. Tsu'tey watched as well, eager now. When Kea'Peyral saw Kn'indy he let out a gasp, for the shadow of her grief had not left her. Olo'eytkan then calmly kneeled to him. "Kea'Peyral, Dreamwalker, we have a sad thing to tell you. Are you well, and do you wish to hear?" She said to him, firmly. Kea'Peyral steadied himself, understanding then this was a very serious time. If he so chose, he knew they would let him rest more, but because he worried for Kn'indy he nodded. Olo'eytkan gripped his shoulder and turned to Kn'indy. "Which do you wish to speak of, your crime, or this thing which he must say?" Kn'indy flinched somewhat when his eyes went to her, and he was deeply confused.

"He can not say." Her voice was a whisper of what it once was, and Kea'Peyral feared for her. "He does not know himself when it happens, and that is why I…" She stopped, the words catching inside of her. She moved forward to sit before him, and finally looked into his eyes. "My Storm Rider, my love, I have no right to call you this, I have done a terrible thing to you." Olo'eytkan stood from them, allowing Kn'indy do as she wished without interrupting.

"My Kn', what could you have ever done to me?" he smiled, a brightness on his face that seemed to shake off the pall of his skin.

Kn'indy could not stop the pride she felt in him, so her words continued a bit stronger. "Do you remember the time it takes for Ikran to fly to the Omaticaya?"

Kea'peyral nodded, thinking even as he did so, "Three days as straight as one may fly?" he answered.

Kn'indy nodded, "Do you remember how long it took to fly you to the Eastern Sea on my back?"

This time he cocked his head to the side, trying to understand why they were having this pleasant conversation if it was suppose to be a time of seriousness. "A day, Ean'Taw is very swift."

Kn'indy shook her head however, "It took three." Kea'peyral, Olo'eytkan and several Na'vi showed surprise. "We were flying from the cave as you remember, your wounds were bandaged as best as I could, and you held me closely. But then… your, storm, overtook you." Kea'Peyral's eyes widened, he had no memory of this. "You snarled in my ear and moved so that you nearly fell, I grabbed you, and you grabbed me in turn. Ean'Taw could not handle our struggle and we fell from the sky." She looked at him sadly as the shock colored his face. "We crashed through the trees and you went mad. I would have killed you then I think, to end your misery. I stood over you with my knife as you panted and hissed at nothing… but Atokirina drifted from the sky and landed upon your brow. You stilled. Ean'Taw came beside me, and bent to you, he nudged you." Kn'indy wiped her eyes and all around her listened quietly. "I knew then, Eywa wanted me to help you. So I pulled you from the vines, and tried to care for you."

"For a day I bandaged you, brought you drink and chewed food for you. All the while you spoke in whispers of the voices…" Again the Na'vi around her looked to each other, some in awe others in worry. "I knew you must have spoken to Eywa because a peace fell over you… but then, the next morning…" Her voice failed her, and she rushed to go on. "The next morning you did not move, you did not breathe. Your eyes saw no more and I called for you! Why would Eywa give you to me just to take you away? I knew I had to help you, I could not fail Eywa, I could not let you go, so… so I made the bond." Kea'peyral gasped, Na'vi around them shifted. Olo'eytkan looked at her with new eyes. "I thought you were dieing! I did not know you, you would…" Kn'indy steadied herself. "When I made the bond I was flooded with, with so much emotion, thoughts, feelings, a vastness I can not express. I felt you become one with me, but stronger then Pa'li, or Ikran, or anything. I felt you _within_ me. And there was so much within you! A thousand voices, lives, sights, and- and I could not believe it. Surely it must have been the breath of Eywa!"

Kn'indy had tears falling, but of reverence, not sorrow. "So beautiful, so tranquil." She blushed then, "I stayed with you for hours, feeding you my strength as I was overwhelmed by yours. But I knew you needed more than I could give. So the next morning, you slept in peace, and I carried you to my People." Kea'peyral listened in amazement when Knindy finally finished, waiting in hushed anticipation. So too were the other Na'vi waiting, a mix of expressions across a sea of conflicted faces.

Yet he was not confused, he smiled and gently brought a hand up to her face, "My Kn', will I never be able to thank you?"

Kn'indy gawked at him, but did not pull away from the touch she had longed for, "My Love, you do not understand… I made the bond when you could not choose, we are mated for life." she said in hushed regret.

Kea'Peyral looked at her strangely, "You would have me for life?"

Ki'indy was rocked by his words, as were many of the other Na'vi. He acted as if she had done nothing wrong, as if he were lucky to have been wronged! Kn'indy finally took his face in both hands, "You do not understand, you did not know me, yet I forced the bond, I took you when you could not choose."

"And for that you saved my life." He said simply, still not seeing why she grieved. "I can not look away from that, this image, your hands shaking as you bring your braid to touch mine… one who was bond cut… you must have gotten blood upon…" Kn'indy looked even more unbelieving, "You took a great risk my Kn', bonding to one such as I, broken. Though you did not know me, to save me, to please Eywa, I could have hurt you, taken your mind, killed us both. No, I chose the moment I saw you."

Kn'indy felt the tears falling anew though they were not of reverence nor sorrow, but happiness. "But, but, I have… I have done such things… I bonded with you each time you could not control your storm, when others did not see, I bonded to calm you, and bring you back. You did not know yourself then, so many times!" she gushed.

Kea'peyral looked at her even more lovingly, "You risked loosing yourself in my storms to bring me back?" Kn'indy couldn't believe it, he was blind in his love. She could do not wrong, and he was not even angry she had usurped his will numerous times.

"Eywa has blessed me too much." She wept openly, and flung herself around him.

He readily embraced her with his only arm, though her hands upon his tender back brought him pain, he did not lessen his grip on her. Olo'eytkan looked on the remarkable sky person, and her face was still. Beside her, Tsu'tey looked on in amazed confusion. Were all sky people so forgiving? Or was this one merely the greatest fool who did not know when he had been betrayed. Accepting one who bonded when he had no will, how could his heart rest easy with that? Olo'eytkan spoke again however, and her words stopped all. "What then of her punishment?"

Kn'indy and Kea'peyral looked at her, "What punishment?" he asked.

Olo'eytkan did not move, sold as the rock, "In our law, to force the bond for any reason is a great wrong against the people. Though you have accepted her, and forgive her for this, the law is the law. Her reasons were not just; Eywa gave her a sign to keep you alive, but she did not need to bond with you for this. She could have brought you back to us then, after she had freed and cared for you enough to fly again, but you both slept instead. When you saw no more, still she could have flown swiftly to us and if Eywa willed it, you would be saved. But she selfishly took you in her hands, trusting not in Eywa, but herself. For this she wronged you, and though you accept her now, it is still _after_ you have bonded and thus become a part of each other." Her words fell upon them like far arrows. "Though you now can not reject a part of yourself, she still must be made to answer for her crimes upon you." The Tsahik agreed it was so, and Kn'indy looked away, shamed in the truth of the words. Kea'Peyral laughed. The Na'vi around him looked at each other nervously, Tsu'tey could not believe his impudence, Olo'etykan narrowed her eyes.

"Whose law?" He shook his head, "Na'vi law? Sky people law? I have forgiven her, I feel no wrong from her actions. She has saved me, even if it was in a way your law would not allow. Yes, I may have been saved by you, but I wasn't, not by you, not Eywa, not God, but her." His voice grew loud, stronger than he looked. "_She_ saved me, _she_ cared for me. She loves me. Only her. The Sky people, the Na'vi, God, Eywa all of them have forsaken me. But not her!"

Olo'eytkan looked at him calmly, "It is the law of the people, law all Na'vi follow."

He stood so suddenly, though staggering, it surprised Olo'eytkan and she stepped back. "I NOT NA'VI!" He screamed at her, his face contorted in rage.

Kn'indy stood, grabbing him, trying to calm. "My love, my storm, still, still."

She tried to say, but he did not back away, instead lunging forward with his teeth bared. "I WILL NEVER BE ONE OF THE PEOPLE!"

Olo'eytkan looked at him in disbelief, now truly as confused and slightly awed as the others. He was still great in form, larger in size then many of the Na'vi, but more so as he shouted in his fury, he seemed as large as Toruk. And a stranger thing happened then, as Kn'indy tried to clam him, touching him. The lights of his body began to glow brighter and brighter. It was odd to notice these, for it was bright day, but before their very eyes, the small stars of his body grew and grew, and Kn'indy tried to hold him, her voice pleading more urgently. "My Storm rider! Still! Be still!" She was saying, but as he staggered, his eyes seemed to loose focus, and a voice came from the crowd.

"It is happening again!" It was Txon'taw. "The demon lights!"

"No, no." Kn'indy was telling him, even as the lights of his body began to pulse, like a heart beat from the top of his face down to his toes.

"My Kn', My Kn'" his words came out mumbled and the black of his eyes spread until no gold showed.

Olo'eytkan and the other Na'vi looked on in horror. His body fell slack then, into Kn'indys arms, and he growled. Kn'indy no longer looked at him, but instead in panic at those around her. They could all see now, and she knew this storm would be greater then the others. They all had been growing in severity, stronger and stronger, until the only thing which brought him back was her bond. At first she did it out of love, but then it became a matter of convenience, and after that a weapon to stop him from being killed or hurting anyone. "I must, I must." She was saying over and over to the faces around her. Kea'peyral, mindless of his broken arm tried to straighten it and the yowl of pain made the Na'vi jump. The flashing lights grew more frequent, and his muscles shivered under his skin, his hands shook. "I must! I'm sorry, my love!" She brought her braid up, and before any could stop her, his braid reached for her own. The very moment they touched, his body fell completely limp. Olo'eytkan rushed forward, but Kn'indy screamed for her to stay back- a scream lost as her voice peaked in a haunting wail of ecstasy.

Olo'eytkan leapt back, and the Na'vi around them pushed each other to move away. For now Kn'indys' body glowed with a brightness that was unnatural to any Na'vi. Her body pulsed along with his, and though she could not see it, her eyes shimmered. When she spoke, her voice whispered and screamed at the same time, two voices. "Please stay back, it is the only way, I do not know what will happen if I get lost in the… in the…" Her eyes tried to roll into the back of her head, she ducked then and uttered a roar no Na'vi should ever have been able to make. That was when the sky people's beast flew over the trees. Panic, confusion, and chaos scattered the Ikran people. Kn'indy fought with herself, her body pulsing faster and faster. The pilot, and the one known as Grace watched in absolute awe from above. Grace motioned with her hands, but the sky person who rode in the head of the beast shook her own. Suddenly Grace dropped from the animal of stone skin, landing with a grunt. She had trouble standing, and limped over and through the Na'vi. Without choice the sky people's animal turned to try and land a ways off. Grace came towards them, staring at the remarkable sight.

"Do not go near!" Olo'eytkan shouted, "He is a demon! He posses the people!"

"No!" Grace cried, stopping a short way away to hold out her hands. "He isn't a demon, this is just…" But her words failed her as she came closer. Kn'indy was writhing now, the pulsing glow unlike anything she had seen on Pandora.

"GraaaAAAAaaace!" The unnatural voice groaned, pleading almost.

"I'm here, it's alright!" she tried to say, speaking in English. "You're suffering from Post Traumatic Stress, you think you are somewhere else, but you aren't."

"Where am I?" The double voice answered, though clearly Kn'indy fought with herself behind her own eyes.

"You are safe with friends, with people who love you!" Grace tried, coming closer still.

"Sky people do not love, they do not see!" The voice hissed. "I can not seeeeEEEEEeee."

Grace felt the hair stand up on the back of her neck, and she felt like she was going to be set upon by a wild animal, but she kept talking. "Hey… hey, come on, calm down now." She babbled. Again Kn'indy writhed, this time unleashing a howl that was both low and high, male and female. Around them Na'vi had weapons, bows raised, and spears high. Olo'eytkan stood among them, but did not tell them to kill, her eyes were burning into Grace hoping she would be able to do something about the Sky people demon. "Hey, hey, guess what? Hey." She said, looking away from all the weapons and only into Kn'indys' eyes. Kn'indy looked at her with bared teeth. Grace took a soft breath, crouching low and non-threateningly. "Meow, meow, meow, meow- meow, meow, meow, meow- meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow." Her voice sang nervously, trying to follow the tune. Kn'indy's growl, deep in her throat lessened, her eyes starring wide and body frozen.

"I want chicken, I want dinner, I want meow mix please deliver." Grace sang, feeling foolish, but hoping and unable to think of anything else. Kn'indy looked to her for a long time as she continued the song, and the lights slowed. "Meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, meow, me…" Her voice faltered, the memories coming back and the hidden pain of loosing him returning at the thought of loosing him again. "Meow, meow," She forced herself. "Meow, you stupid bastard, meow, don't make me go through it again, come on, meow!" She raised her voice. "Meow damnit meow!" For a time, all was hushed; the Na'vi waited with their weapons, all eyes upon the three figures. Then, the lights of Kn'indys' body stilled, the glow faded, and her shimmering eyes darkened. She blinked and Kea'Peyral's body stirred. Olo'eytkan watched with utter focus.

Kea'peyral looked up, his eyes confused beyond all measure. "Grace?" He tried to sit up. "Ah! Ah, my arm is broken! Ah, oh god my back, what happened? Where's the scorpion? Somebody shot me in the leg! Why am I on the ground?" He spoke in English, then he turned his head and jumped, "Wha wha!" He said as Kn'indy looked at him.

"My love?" She said in Na'vi.

"Love? What is love, baby don't hurt me, wait where'd that come from? Wait, who are you? Do you mean, what, who me?" Then he looked at Grace, "Holy shit! I'm bonding with somebody, who am I bonding with?" He tried to look around himself, Grace was crying in relief.

"My Storm, you have come back to me?" Kn'indy said again, not understanding as he continued to speak in English.

"Storm? No I'm…" His eyes widened, "No wait, I am Storm… No, I'm, wait, keyhey, pay rall? who am I? I'm not Batman…" He narrowed his eyes. "Oh Eywa, everything is fuzzy." Then he snapped his fingers. "That's right! I was grabbed by the Leomonopalamatrix, and then the Ikran, and…." he looked to Kn'indy. "You saved me!" he exclaimed happily, "You ravished me!" he gasped, pulling his head away from her. Grace started laughing. Kn'indy looked at him utterly confused. "You ravished me a lot!" his face burned, "But you also saved m- Holy shit! I killed a Thanator!" His eye bulged and he looked like someone hit him in the nose. Now grace was laughing uproariously. Kn'indy was just smiling as she shared the wash of emotions that cascaded through him, but he seemed to be fine. She leaned forward placing her forehead on him, and holding him closely.

"My love, my storm." She said, simply enjoying being with him.

As she cuddled close to him, he blinked, "Well this is kind of nice." He looked blankly at Grace. Grace was laughing so hard, in joy as much as relief the somber fearful mood of the other Na'vi could not stay grounded. Olo'eytkan motioned for all to lower their weapons as obviously some kind of sky people ritual was preformed by the one known as Grace. Tsu'tey looked on in a confused, slightly fearful, determination. The dream walkers were demons, and their madness could touch the people if they bonded. He would need to warn his people.

"Ah, Grace?" A voice said, behind them all.

Two other Avatars waited looking around nervously with med kits and other equipment. Only then did Grace's laugher slowly end, she remembered why she had come. "Oh, Olo'eytkan!" She said in Na'vi as she stood, but winced and had to crouch again as her left ankle pained her. "Olo'eytkan, the sky people are trying to mine near your lands! I need your help to stop them!"

This news made the Olo'eytkan narrow her eyes, "What is this you speak?" She said, somewhat reeling from everything that had happened and reaffirming her position as chief.

"Please, it is very urgent! The sky people will send the flying 'machines', the 'scorpions' through your sky hunting grounds, they will lead you to a place that should not be there. If we do not act now, we will miss this and they will succeed. Much forest will be destroyed! I need your help, and his." She nodded to Kea'Peyral who sat blinking with a stupid if not confused smile on his face as Kn'indy snuggled his neck. The Olo'eytkan looked from one to the others, Grace pleading with her, Kea'Peyral looking at her like a stunned wide-eyed child and Kn'indy… the shadow was gone. Her lips tightened.

"Ikran take flight in twos, spread out, see if this is true and follow as the hunter, unseen. Return one with the location, the other stay and watch. All return in one sun shift, Go!" She called. Numerous Na'vi split off all taking to their Ikrans', clouding the sky and hooting. Olo'eytkan walked slowly to Grace and the prone Na'vi who now looked up to her, above her head a great flock of Ikran took flight in formations, her eyes burned as she spoke darkly. "If you lie, all of you shall suffer for it."


	11. Chapter 11: The Sky Person Falls

**Chapter XI: The Sky Person Falls**

It was not long before a single Na'vi returned. He flew fast, landed closely, and his expression was verification enough. His words however, were more then they expected, "Ten flying Sco'peens, we could not miss them!" Olo'etykan looked at the still sitting figures. Grace was getting her ankle wrapped, Kea'peyral was blushing furiously as he slowly regained his memory and Kn'indy continued to cuddle with him. The Olo'eytkan didn't even acknowledge her distrust in them, nor her previous threat, she simply moved on as the matter was far too important.

"What do you need." she said firmly, cutting through all questions of why, when, where, or how. Her directness, and willingness to move on surprised Tsu'tey. When it was obvious what had to be done she didn't stand on ceremony.

Grace, on her part, didn't rub anything in. "I have tools with me that can capture the sight of the things the sky people are doing, with these I can show them to others, the leaders and people back on my world, they can make the 'RDA' stop." She said urgently. The Olo'eytkan huffed once, as if she didn't see the point of the delay but was not foolhardy enough to immediately attack in response.

Tsu'tey however was not as certain as her, "Olo'eytkan I offer my riders to aid you in removing the sky people from your lands!" he said to her proudly.

The Olo'eytkan nodded to him, "I thank you, Teu'tey, for the offer but my people can defend our own lands and if the sky people are going to attack the Ikran people, I do not wish to bring the war upon the Omaticaya." She said levelly. Tsu'tey frowned, but did not press.

"War!" Kea'peyral's voice climbed a few octaves, still in English, he stood but moved with his same surprising swiftness and pulled tight against Kn'indys braid like a dog jerking against its leash from a full run. "BLAHGAGAH!" He rolled his arm to catch his balance as Kn'indy stood too counter the yank.

"My storm, do not stand so fast!" she complained.

"I'm s-sorry!" He said in Na'vi, rubbing the back of his head at the base of the skull. Kn'indy reluctantly pulled away, releasing the bond. Kea'peyral actually seemed to grow dizzy from the loss of connection, Kn'indy steadied him.

Grace quickly spoke, "The sky people don't want war Olo'eytkan, these captured sights can stop it, but we must hurry before the sky people go any further."

The Avatar at her foot took hold of her arm, looking worriedly at her heavily bandaged leg, "I don't think you'll be going anywhere, Grace you've really done a job on your ankles, the right is just sprained but I think this one is broken." he said sadly.

"I'll be fine." Grace waved him off, but her face was strained.

Olo'eytkan narrowed her eyes, "Can you teach the use of these tools?"

"Yes, but not what would be best to capture. This is why I brought these dreamwalkes with me, they know what would be most effective to stop the sky people." Grace tested her foot despite the medic's words and winced sharply, looking helplessly in frustration at Kea'Peyral. "You have to help them Ke-" She stopped, now uncertain exactly what she should call him. He looked at her with the same kind of slightly lost expression. Grace decided she would feel conflicted relief later. "_You_ need to help them. Do you remember what the Mining equipment looks like, and how to operate elevators?" she demanded.

Kea'Peyral's eyes widened, "I-I, yes, I know what an elevator is and how to… wait, you mean going in?" He knit his brow.

Grace sighed shortly, switching to English, "I figured we could make four groups of four, an Avatar to take film and three Na'vi to protect them and help them get close. We'd approach from all directions meaning we'd get footage from all around the compound, but, somebody has to get pictures of the inside of the compound, Delilah and James are just scientists they don't know anything about stealth, sneaking, or combat. " she motioned to the other two Drivers.

"and I do?" he said incredulously. "Oh wait, I do."

Grace nodded. "Right, you've been with the Na'vi for years, plus if I remember correctly you've played endless sneaking espionage video games right? But I didn't know about your arm, I hate to do this, but I don't think I'll be able to sneak anywhere with my stupid stunt." she motioned to her bandaged forelegs.

Kea'Peyral looked at himself appreciatively. "No, no… actually I've been hunting, fighting, and tracking with the Na'vi for close to something like three years and I _did_ do testing for the top of the line stealth games, especially the VR ones where you actually had to move. They had to dumb down some of the effects to match the normal person, but I was good at helping them test the limits of the hardest modes so actually I'm pretty damn qualified!" he said happily, involuntarily giving her the thumbs up.

"What do you speak." The Olo'eytkan said firmly in Na'vi, having watched the exchange in English with patience.

Kea'peyral looked bashful again, "Oh, so sorry." He said sheepishly before repeating everything they had spoken of in natural Na'vi.

Once he was done, Kn'indy looked sick with worry, Olo'eytkan set her jaw. "It is a good plan, but so many Ikran could alarm our prey, a smaller flight would better serve the purpose of 'capturing these images' then a larger force. Unless the sky people choose to fight. But. Why should I trust, this, demon?" She said openly, motioning to Kea'peyral.

Kea'peyral looked stunned, "D-demon!" he blinked.

Kn'indy stepped forward then, "Great Olo'eytkan, may I speak?" She said respectfully. She nodded for her to continue, her hands set firm. "Much has happened to the Ikran people because of Kea'peyral and I know we are hard to trust right now." She stood tall, "But I also know the sky people 'RDA', even now, are on our lands doing things the other sky people do not know of and do not want them to. The Na'vi do not want this either. My Storm and I can help, we must, and we are willing to do everything we can to help both the Na'vi and the good sky people." She took a short breath, "Because the sky people will never leave us entirely, and they can not be stopped by the Na'vi. I have seen inside my love's mind, I have seen the horrible things they can and will do. Force will not end this." She bowed then to her knees. "Please, let us help to prevent many of the Na'vi and sky people from dying needlessly."

The Olo'eytkan was impressed, though she was still and stoic. Kea'peyral knew the importance of the moment, and he kneeled as well. She looked around herself, at the dreamwalkers, at her people who remained, and at Tsu'tey who frowned grimly unbelieving. She looked to the Tsahik, who nodded and she closed her eyes; then, looking up she raised her voice into a declaration. "Kn'indy of the Ikran People of the Eastren Sea, Grace Dreamwalker of the Sky People, your voices reach me well. You are both striving to protect your people, putting aside your differences, and trying to bring a better future for both peoples. I do not think the Sky people are as invincible as you say..." Tsu'tey lifted his chin in approval and obvious agreement. "…but I see the wisdom in your words of peace. If war should come the _Ikran_ people of the eastern sea will destroy these "sky" people, but I will not be the first Olo'eytkan to wage war on a new people from a new world. There is much we may learn from each other, I will not condemn us to learning of only death and war." She took a deep breath, her breast swelling proudly.

"The Ikran people of the Eastern sea will help you teach the sky people of the traitors in their midst." Grace and the other smiled in relief, Tsu'tey looked thoughtful but in his heart there was still disbelief. "But." The Olo'eytkans voice cut into them, setting them up for something grave. "Kea'peyral, Storm Rider, who is Na'vi and not Na'vi, Sky people and not Sky people; I do not know you. You are the hardest being to see of any I have met. At once I have trusted you, believed in you, feared you, and not known you. I can not help but feel you are dangerous, very dangerous. To my people and to your own; there is something within you, I do not know if it is Eywa or some sky people demon. I have watched you hunt for my people, love them without condition, and strike at them, and endanger them in your rescue. I do not know you." She frowned to him, but as one who was unhappy to say what she had to, not out of dislike for him. "If you do this thing, succeed; then I shall consider this sign from Eywa that you are meant to help us and I will not kill you." Kn'indy, Grace and Kea'peyral looked stunned.

"But you can not stay with us. Whatever is within you is too dangerous, until you have tamed it or it has destroyed you, you will be sent away from the people." Kn'indy and Grace both nearly protested but Olo'eytkan raised her voice. "I regret to say this, it does not set well on my heart, but I must think of my people, and they _all_ fear you greatly. They are not safe around you, and you are not safe around them. If you return, you will be banished, but not marked, you're life will be in Eywa's hands.

"Then I shall follow him." Kn'indy jumped up.

The Olo'eytkan looked to her with the same calm authority. "Hear these words before you decide, Kn'indy of the Ikran people. You would have been sent away for your crimes, even if the sky people have no law or punishment for you, the Na'vi would have justice. But, what you have done would have eventually been forgiven by the people and you could then return. If you go with Kea'Peyral… you can never return. Still, for your help in this, you will not be marked either. You both shall be innocent in the eyes of all but Eywa, but you may not come back to the Ikran people. Is this what you want?" She tilted her head sharply. Grace watched nearly drowning in her hidden concern. For their part, Kea'Peyral looked to Kn'indy and she to him.

"My Kea'Peyral, I will not leave you even if you are a Demon." She said softly taking his hand in both of hers.

He smiled to her, so lovingly, "I am yours my Kn', I always have been, but you should not do this. Don't throw away the only life you have ever known, friends, family, your people… not for me. I'm crazy, broken, scorned and covered in scars. Yes, I would rather be with you then anybody else, on either world, but I can not protect or provide for you! I can not even do this for myself. It would not be a good life for you. I have no home, no people, no place in this world. Don't do that to yourself."

Kn'indy smiled, her face lit up so brightly, there looked to be a light shining from within her, "Your place is at my side." She said simply and pulled him close. His face fell with such relief and love and need for her, her buried himself into her neck and she into him. They held each other, eyes closed and seeming like the only two people in the entire universe.

The Tsahik stepped forward and spoke, "Eywa is kind; she watches you and may have a great part for you to play in this meeting of two peoples. Through you we see the worst of the Sky people and Na'vi, but we also see the best. If it is to be so, Eywa will allow you to come back to us." The Na'vi who did not fly, Tsu'tey, the Tsahik and Olo'eytkan all watched the couple and their hearts lightened, visible on their face.

Grace was touched by the moment, but she knew the urgency of their mission. "I hate to interrupt the Kodak moment." she said, meaning it and not meaning it, "But the ten Sampsons' have probably already landed; our best bet is to leave now so they can't track our approach with 'thermal-' I mean, our body heat, and wait for nightfall to sneak in so can avoid 'motion dete'- being tracked by movement."

The Olo'eytkan nodded in agreement, trusting Grace, Kn'indy and Kea'Peyral pulled apart. "I shall send two hunters to carry your dreamwalkers, Kea'Peyral will fly with Kn'indy, Grace, I shall take you myself." She said with burning eyes, leaving no room for argument she turned to the small crowd who watched to choose who to go. Strangely, Ni'win stepped forward followed closely by Txon'taw.

"Olo'eytkan, I ask that you let me carry one of the dreamwalkers." Ni'win said.

"As do I." Added Txon'taw.

The Olo'eytkan looked at them approvingly, but even more surprising Tsu'tey stepped forward from the crowd. "Olo'eytkan, I, Tsu'tey of the Omaticaya ask that you let _me_ take Grace of the sky people. My Ikran is not as swift as your own, but he is strong. It would be a great honor to help stop the sky people, for _all_ Navi. I owe a debt to Kea'Peyral for what my people have done to him. With this, it shall be repaid." The Olo'eytkan thought for a time on his words, and his request.

The Tsahik came up beside her, "Our people fight together for Eywa; the Omaticaya are friend to the Eastren Sea clan, your bravery will help us all Tsu'tey." The Olo'eytkan didn't dispute this and instead turned back to the others before she could open her mouth though Kea'Peyral snickered to himself, a sound the Na'vi were not use to. All turned to him, snapping there heads, startling him.

"Ah, I-I, I was just thinking I'm not truly Kea'Peyral, 'No name'. I've been called 'eveng the 'child', the scarred one, the dreamwalker, and storm rider and er… I've got a lot of names…" He looked at his feet. "I thought it was funny."

Kn'indy shared his smile, "My love, then which of your many names shall I call you?"

He smiled at her, and shrugged forgetting his arm which still pained him, "You can keep calling me 'Yawne'."

Kn'indy crinkled her nose and upper lip, "Then all would call you love, but you are _my_ love."

His face drooped, "Oh right, well I suppose you can just call me many names." he shrugged.

"Very well, Pxay'Peyral." Olo'eytkan said.

"Er that's not what I mea-" He tried to say, but she ignored him.

"I shall lead the rest of our warriors we can spare and fly near this 'base' in case they choose to attack and you need our help." The newly named Pxay'peyral drooped his shoulders, sucking in air as he yet again forgot his arm was hurt.

"You know that might not be such a bad idea." Grace said in English, then spoke up in Na'vi. "Olo'eytkan, if you flew that many around the sky people base they would become afraid and send out their 'scorpions' to chase you off, giving us a chance to enter unseen by anything."

Everyone looked impressed, as did the Olo'eytkan, "Good. We go." She turned to the people around her, shouted for them to rally around her and ran to the cliffs edge, a stream of Na'vi followed her. Tsu'tey whistled for his Ikran, as the Avatars helped her stand.

"Grace what do we tell Trudy and Wainfleet?" The female Avatar, Deliah, asked.

Grace smirked. "Tell them the chief has invited us on a ride along, it will be a night mission, and tell them to wait." The male avatar nodded, handing Grace over to Tsu'tey as he ran off. "Oh Great." Grace said off handedly as she clung to the warrior. Txon'taw and Ni'win nodded in respect as they left Pxay'peyral and Kn'indy to get their own Ikran. Kn'indy called Ean'taw, who nudged Pxay'peyral familiarly. Once all were mounted, the great flight of Ikran circled the village being cheered by the few Na'vi who remained to guard the village, children, and keep it running. Trudy and Wainfleet crowed around the Sampson feeling very small indeed in the shadow of the looming flock. This great line of Ikran riders flew onward and soon gathered all the others flyers who had gone searching for the base, it was over two hundred strong Ikran People of the Eastern sea who flew towards the location of the sky people's illegal mine. The clouds of Ikran seemed endless. As they flew, Pxay'Peyral held onto Kn'indy with one good arm, and he sang into the wind, and into her ear.

"Na na na na na na na na, na na na na na na na na, Ikran, Ikran~ Ikran! Na na na na na na na na~" Kn'indy laughed.

…

A haze of dusk swept over the huge flock of Ikran when they finally spotted the lone Rider who waited for them, he instantly took off and led them all to a far corner of the Ikran peoples' hunting grounds. As they approached the exact location in the falling light they could already make out grey boxes in the distance. Coming closer still, they saw lines of fence, a temporary storage building, a command center and numerous artillery towers. Immediately a claxon blaring sound emitted from the towers, and on the ground pilots ran to their scorpions. The Ikran flight circled far out of range of arrows, waiting for the Sampsons to rise, while all the Avatar drivers filmed the entire thing in full three sixty digital copy. The strange whine of their engines powering up was the sign to bank away and the Olo'eytkan ordered the flock lower giving those carrying the Avatars and their guards the chance to land unseen and hike the rest of the way. Once they were well under the cover of the cloud and then the foliage, the flight surged upward and suddenly veered off. The ten Sampsons rose like a swam of angry hornets and gave chase yet while keeping a respectful distance at that.

On the ground Tsu'tey and James helped Grace across the dense jungle ground to a safer position, their Ikran taking to the trees but staying nearby. Overhead they waited for the sound of the Sampsons to disappear completely, and for the alarm to stop. They hoped the compound would remain confused and distracted by the riders as they led them on a wild Ikran chase. It took a bit more time to get everyone close enough due to Grace being slowed by her injuries. Pxay'Peyral moved unhindered, minus his arm, even though only days ago he seemed to be on his deathbed. Tsu'tey all but carried Grace at some points, leaving the other Avatar drivers huffing and puffing to catch up. As soon as they reached the fence line however, it all became a matter of stealth. The Avatars waited in the foliage as Ni'win, Kn'indy, and Txon'taw searched for a way in. As they waited Pxay'peyral turned to Grace. "Hey Grace." He whispered in English.

"Yeah?" She answered anxious.

"I'm really a blue cat elf now, can you freakin' believe it?" He gestured at her strongly, his eyes and smile a mile wide.

"Well you're not so blue anymore." She tried not to smile. "You're kind of gray."

Pxay'peyral gave an exaggerated frown. "What, I've been sick." he pouted.

"No it suits you, you look like a cloud- Storm Rider." She teased.

Pxay'peyral missed the sarcasm and nodded approvingly at the thought. "When you put it like that, these white scars with the blue outline kinda look like lighting too. If you squint." he said, squinting at himself.

"Now you're just being silly." Grace rolled her eyes, but couldn't help her smile. The scouting group returned and they had to circle the fence a mile or so to find a suitable way in, as they did so dusk turned into night. The forest came alive with lights; more lights then beneath the sea of earth and all of the neon of vegas combined, it was if a galaxy had fallen to rest upon Pandora. Grace caught herself marveling at the beauty, despite the anxiety she felt. They moved in a line with most of the Na'vi in the front, followed by the Avatars with Kn'indy helping Grace and Paxy'Peyral bringing up the rear.

He sang softly in English as they went, but not loud enough to be dangerous. "Dun, dun, dun-dun, dun, dun, dun-dun, do do doooo, do do doooo, dun dun-" Grace hushed him anyway, he only smiled. "Secret~ A-gent man, secret, A-gent man, they've given you a Na'vi and taken away your name~"

"Can't you ever be serious?" Grace scolded, hoping he didn't see her smile, though Kn'indy saw it and shared it. Grace didn't want to admit it was doing wonders for her nerves and for the nerves of the other Avatars who were not use to being in the Pandora jungles let alone sneaking through it at night and into a compound with armed guards and who knows what else; he made it hard to stay frightened though..

"Grace, are you sure you're up to this?" James asked in English, as they stopped. It seemed they would have to climb a huge tree and then slowly descend down the other side. "It looks we'll have to sprint across from here."

Grace frowned, Pxay'peyral shared the expression, Grace tested her ankle a bit. "You're right. I would just slow you down." she said finally in Na'vi.

Txon'taw looked to Ni'win, she nodded to him, "Ni'win is faster then I; I will stay with Grace." he said.

Grace sighed, "I don't like you guys going in there without me."

Deliah and James shrugged, "Should have thought of that before you base jumped out of a Sampson." Deliah said wryly. "We know how to take pictures and I'm sure these guys can get us by any trouble, beside, we're just Avatars we can't really die right?"

Grace still frowned, but knew there was nothing more she could really do, "I'll record from here, be careful okay?" They nodded, "Especially you Pay-pal, you better not die or I'll kill you." She pointed at him strongly, jabbing him in the chest.

"In case you haven't notice I'm pretty dang good as surviving." Pxay'peyral shrugged with his eyebrows.

Grace snorted, "Luck isn't a survival instinct."

Pxay'peyral only grinned and the group broke off without another word to begin climbing up the large tree. Grace and Txon'taw watched them, and the space behind the fence incase they needed to call out a warning. Soundlessly, one by one, the bodies slipped down the vines. Once they were upon the flatly packed open dirt, they all crouched. "Stay low, here we go." Pxay'peyral said in Na'vi. As one the group dashed across the open space, mindful of any lights, and ears open. They were deathly silent except for the Avatars' boots. They all gathered behind the back wall of a work building, and waited to see if their mad dash had been spotted. After a few moments, Pxay'peyral looked around a corner and motioned for them to follow him. The small group of three Na'vi and two Avatars melted into the shadows, disappearing from Grace and Txon'taw's sight. Grace filmed them and then turned the camera on herself explaining what was going on, the current date, and time. It was ten hours before sunrise.


	12. Chapter 12: He with Skills

**Chapter XII: He with Skills**

Pxay'peyral crawled upon his belly across wide open space fully illuminated by work lights; the rest of the Na'vi and Avatar watched him nervously from the cover of several empty containers. The base was still on alert and presumably still occupied by the wild Ikran chase. They had come to this particular impass after getting a great deal of footage of hauling trucks, and broken parts of equipment set aside for repair which _could_ have belonged to mining equipment. The entrance to the mine itself however, a huge mouth with a massive personnel/cargo elevator, stood well protected. AMP suits routinely patrolled the area, and two fully armed foot soldiers stood around the entrance. The only way in was the elevator; there were secondary 'air vents' miniature holes tunneled deep to accommodate several hoses fixed with filtrations systems which could be used to refill Exopacks incase any of the AMP guard suits or the miners in their equipment malfunctioned and where trapped beneath the surface for prolonged periods, but, these were a tight squeeze for a human, let alone a Navi.

Therefor, the only way in or out, was the gigantic service elevator which carted the masses of stone, equipment, and people up and down the unknown depth. To get inside they would somehow have to draw away the guards, dodge the AMP suits, and climb down the shaft to get real proof of actual mining of Unobtanium otherwise the 'soil samples for future locations' standby lie would still sell. The buildings themselves were only of temporary make, meaning it could all be packed up and shipped off at a moments notice; only the guard towers and security fences themselves spoke of any real permanence, and they were skeleton structures at best. Who would fault the RDA for providing top security for the smallest projects on Pandora? No, they needed to get inside, find some Unobtainium and the actually mining equipment, document it and get out. Alive. The bare dirt ground the entire compound currently rested on, a rich black, made the perfect camo.

Pxay'peyral smothered himself in it, confusing and annoying the little infiltration group, until he said, "Lights." And they understood he meant to hide their lights, what he did next was not expected. Pxay'peyral stripped naked. Kn'indy blushed for him and tried to tell him it was not the time for such things when he only smiled and picked up a stone. The Omaticaya and Clan of the Eastern Sea had never seen a sling before, or at least, had much use for them. "I'll never regret that summer..." he said offhandedly before expertly swinging a rock, single handedly, and sending it careening into the bare bulb of a gigantic work light- plunging a good portion of the compound into total darkness. He then motioned for everyone to get down; as the soldiers turned their gun lights to the suddenly area of darkness.

Tsu'tey looked aggravated, "Why do you darken a way so far from us?"

"Because _we_ aren't crossing in the dark, they would expect that." Pxay'peyral smiled. Tsu'tey only looked at him with the same uncertain trepidation, as if he could not quite decide if he admired or disdained the Na'vi sky demon. "Wait here." He whispered and without another word slithered out onto open ground in full light. The Na'vi and especially the Avatars were outright surprised and nervous at this, but could do nothing. Tsu'tey took up a position with his bow incase the soldiers by the elevator spotted him.

"Skxwang, skxawng, skxawng." he hissed under his breath. There was a moment of ceased breath as the AMP driver stationed with the guards moved. Tsu'tey raised an arrow…! But he only moved on to investigate the broken light, the rhythmic drumming of his metal feet against the ground growing farther and farther as he stayed on alert. When the group all looked back they were shocked to see Pxay'peyral was already far out into the open, his body completely flat, his tail wrapped around his thigh, and the side of his face in the dirt. Kn'indy did not see how he could crawl in this way with the pain of his arm, certainly no Na'vi had ever crawled this way. The only movement they could catch was the undulation of his hips as he slid forward inch by agonizing inch. Ni'win and Delilah looked away, blushing. Kn'indy gawked.

"What the hell kind of video games are they letting kids play nowadays?" Deliah quipped in English and awe and amusement. Everyone else was speechless; they all would have been laughing at the ridiculous posture and movement if they weren't all too afraid he would be caught any moment to laugh. As he continued forward however they grasped the wisdom of his plan, he was actually heading for a specific goal, two-foot high ruts created by the massive tires of the hauling trucks lined the ground in a criss-crossing patter. Every time the guards looked in his direction by the turn of their bodies or the slight tilt of their head –somehow witness by Pxay'peyral despite his flat position- he would lie completely still flush against one of the ruts, effectively hiding in the almost nonexistent shadow there, and appearing like a lump of dirt, covered as he was _in_ dirt.

Still, he was so close and so exposed, it seemed almost impossible that they would catch him at _some_ point. The only problem with this flawless awe inspiring maneuver is the sheer slowness of it. He literally ate up only inches at a time and even then perhaps a few feet in an hour. The AMP unit had long since arrived at the broken light, but thankfully was sweeping the area with other AMPs. Everyone was on the edge of their toes as Pxay'peyral inched his way closer and closer to the side of the elevator, following the deep ruts. Both of the Avatars grew so weary of the stress and time it was taking they had to sit on their butts, though James was taking footage the whole time.

"Bloody brilliant." He breathed. Kn'indy's heart swelled with pride so much, her chest did so as well. Tsu'tey only kept watch, certain any moment he would have to begin firing. Ni'win, for her part, actually got down on her belly and practiced the maneuver. They were so filled with trepidation, and preparation for being discovered that it was a shock to them when Delilah reported he'd been moving closer for two whole hours. By this time however, Pxay'peyral had gotten half way to his location, and never stopped moving unless looked at. The AMPs in the distance where all now waiting in a circle as another machine was brought out to immediately replace the bulb. The light suddenly returning made each of them jump. Pxay'peyral was now only a few dozen feet from the guards, and by some miracle, they still had not seen him. Their hearts all quickened strongly however, when the AMP turned and slowly began marching back.

Truly the sky people were blind, and apparently blinder still were the guards at the elevator, but the AMP had sensors. If it got close enough, surly it could detect him! Tsu'tey muttered under his breath and Ni'win prepared an arrow as well, Kn'indy unsheathed her dagger. The AMP came closer, and Pxay'peyral was still several feet from the elevator, though even if he reached it there would be no safety there. The AMP's footsteps pounded out a death sentence for Pxay'peyral, inevitable doom. James hands began shaking but he could not look away from the camera, expecting any moment for the massive bullets of the AMPs gun to rip into the ground and finish the valiant Pxay'peyral. For his part, Pxay'peyral inched himself closer to a rut and slowly began to cover himself with more dirt, forming a kind of hill on his other side and back and working his free leg into the ground. The AMP got closer still, the incessant pound of its feet nerve wracking; softly Pxay'peyral lay down fully, calmly. The AMP marched not, five, feet, from, him -and stopped. Everyone held their breath, bow strings drew back.

An eternity passed as the AMP stood over Pxay'peyral, easily within reach. A single step more would land directly on Pxay'peyral's back. No one moved; no one breathed; the AMP turned every so slightly to look at the human guards, and that was when the Scorpions returned. Again the angry hornets flew overhead, circled once and then came to set down on the far side of the compound. The AMP tilted slightly to watch them fly over and turned to follow them. The guards turned too, looking up. With thundering steps the AMP moved a ways away, and resumed its patrol. The guards moved close to each other and spoke excitedly. As one all eyes moved to Pxay'peyral's hiding spot; he was gone. With a shock Tsu'tey and Ni'win rested their arrows, and quickly spotted Pxay'peyral crouched right beside the elevator entrance. None of them had seen him move! The AMP was moving off, the guards were positioned so one had his back to him and in doing so blocked the others' sight.

As soon as they both had their heads turned in the same direction, Pxay'peyral moved with the swiftness of a Thanator. It was like a scene from a kung fu film so precise was the timing. He leapt straight up, the guards turned their heads at the sudden sound of movement, lining up perfectly for him to bring his single arm down on both of their heads in one motion, his fist hitting the top of the head of the far one and his elbow the other. They crumpled like paper. The AMP was only twenty feet away. Pxay'peyral motioned for the group to join him as he pulled up the safety screen blocking the open shaft of the elevator. Kn'indy was smiling ear to ear, as was Ni'win and even Tsu'ety. They broke into a mad dash without hesitation as Key'peyral swung yet another rock and hit the exact same light from earlier, sending down a shower of glass onto the machine which had been set up to replace the bulb.

The AMP snapped in its direction and this time ran full out towards it, the sound of its stomping masking the sound of their running. When they caught up to Pxay'peyral Kn'indy could not help but hug him, once they were close though they saw he was completely out of breath and had to double over to catch it. "I can't believe what I just saw." James was so awed he had to rewind his recording to check, sure enough, as the AMP tilted upward and the guards turned their backs for a split second, Pxay'peyral rolled like a child would down hill and came to a stop against the natural curvature of the compound in a full crouch against the wall.

"Well done My Pxay!" Kn'indy whispered.

Ni'win patted him on the shoulder, "Sky people are not so foolish after all." she smiled, Pxay'peyral smiled at all of them, still out of breath.

"Come we must go." Tsu'tey reminded everybody, though he no longer had any disdain in his voice.

"Hold on." Pxay'peyral kneeled down to the guards, adjusting a valve on their Exopacks. "There."

"You're not going to kill them are you?" Delilah whispered a bit too loudly.

"No, this way they'll think they didn't mix their air right and passed out from too much oxygen." He breathed. Both Avatars looked even more impressed.

"Why aren't you a doctorate again?" James marveled.

"We go." Tsu'tey said a bit more firmly, looking back at the AMP.

"Right, okay kids, now the hard part. Climbing down." He still hadn't caught his breath as he swung over the side and began moving down the lattice work of the mine shaft. Kn'indy followed quickly to help him with his one arm. The Avatars both seemed to pale slightly, but an impatient growl from Tsu'tey and they soon followed. Ni'win and Tsu'tey followed next, having the presence of mind to pull down the safety screen like it was before to avoid suspicion.

"That was seriously amazing Pxay." Deliah had to say once they were shakily making their way down. "I still can't believe they didn't see you!"

Pxay'peyral laughed still out of breath, as Kn'indy stayed beside him. "It was the work lights and masks. The glare on top of night blindness would make anything hard to spot on the ground. They looked up way too much making it even worse for their eyes, too worried about things leaping the fences or flying down from overhead to worry about something crawling right next to them." He said simply as the group slowly clung to the intricate open metal work. "I'm just surprised they didn't have any cameras, they seem to be very slack with watching their own people on this site, or I doubt that would have worked." James shot a look up to Delilah giving her the 'I didn't even think to look' look. Kn'indy only gushed with pride as she helped him climb. The work was strenuous and the going slow, they had to descend several hundred feet before they even spotted what looked like an opening to a level, a square outline of red light.

"Is that an entrance?" James huffed. Everyone was out of breath now, even the hardy Tsu'tey. "Please let it be an entrance." he added.

"I think so." Kn'indy answered for Pxay'peyral who was now too out of breath to speak. It was. Once they were all on level ground again, everyone had to rest. The air was close beneath the ground and the heat was stifling. Red work lights gave the corridor an eerie unnatural glow. It had taken them forty minutes to climb down, and took twenty more for everyone to regain their strength. Once they were on their way again Pxay'peyral and Ni'win led the way, it seemed this part of the tunnels was abandoned for there was no sound of working or workmen. The stillness added to the spooky atmosphere of the seemingly abandoned path. Pxay'peryal held up a stilling hand, the hunter sign for halt and then motioned a strange hanging box on the ceiling. He pantomimed it swiveling and then pointed at his eyes, 'it was a thing which could see them'. He watched it for a while as it turned slightly, and walked directly beneath it quickly rubbing dirt upon its surface.

If the motion was seen they would know soon enough. They moved quickly from there, deeper and deeper until they hit pay dirt, literally. Unused mining equipment, carts lined with Unobtainium dust, even a map with depth guides and station locations. The Avatars filmed all of it, the Na'vi kept watch. "This is unbelievable; I can't believe they would be so low as to dig this far down under our noses." Delilah said with genuine disgust.

"How far does it go?" Kn'indy asked with interest.

"The floor we are on is about five hundred feet or so from the surface, there are about five floors more with varying degrees of… depth…" She drifted off as she read the map. Kn'indy looked at her curiously. "This can't be right." Delilah scowled.

"What?" James asked, Pxay'peyral turned as well.

"This map had floor plans outlined in lines of different color, here, showing the total depth of the mine and way stations." She pointed, speaking in English.

"So?" James followed her finger.

"Well there are other floors below them that are in broken outlines _below_ the current dept, with time frames and a final goal." She moved her finger down, the lights from her body shining enough to see it clearly. "The deadline time…" she checked her watch. "…is this morning." she looked stricken.

"So they're going deeper, so what? We've got all the evidence we need." James asked still unconcerned.

Delilah looked to him seriously. "There are other times crossed out beside them, the new times are written in! If they knew we knew about the mine, why the big hurry to go that much deeper? It would only give us more evidence, I think they are trying to reach a certain depth _before_ we can stop them."

"Well what good would that do?" Pxay'peyral puzzled.

James snapped his fingers repeatedly, the sound echoing loudly in hollow room, irritating the Na'vi who flattened their ears."What if they reach a certain depth the RDA will let them keep using the mine no matter what evidence we have?" he said.

Pxay'peyral flattened his brow, "That's a little out there don't you think? If we go this deep we can keep it?" He nearly scoffed, but Delilah shook her head.

"No it makes sense, if the mine is profitable it would cost them too much _not_ to keep using it, because of all the money they could be making but wouldn't any longer if they had to stop!"

Pxay'peyral looked skeptical, "That's business." James shrugged.

It was Tsu'tey spoke up next, being the only one among the Na'vi who spoke moderate English and thus grasped most of what they spoke of. "So we must stop this digging." He said firmly, as if it was a simple thing.

James shook his head. "It isn't as easy as that, they couldn't dig that far in this time, they'd use more drastic measures. That means blasting." Tsu'tey didn't understand the word.

Pxay'peyral filled in for him and the other Na'vi, "The sky people are going to use their fire to make a great hole in an instant." Ni'win and Kn'indy who had been lost until now, looked at him in astonishment.

"They can do this?" Tsu'tey said unbelieving.

"Oh yes." James and Deliah confirmed.

Tsu'tey scowled, but shook his bow, "Then we _must_ stop them, we will take this 'fire'!"

James winced, "It's not something you can just take…" he was started by Pxay'peyral interrupting him with a smile that showed every part of his fangs

"Actually it is." Everyone looked to him. He gestured with his free hand as he spoke. "If we take the 'explosives', tools the sky people make fire with, we can move them to other places and make the whole mine collapse. One, massive, cave in." James and Deliah looked afraid, Tsu'tey nodded approvingly, Kn'indy looked worried.

"How do we do this?" Ni'win added with the same fear.

Pxay'peyral sighed, "First we would have to find the 'tool's which means going deeper, possibly to the very bottom." He looked tired just saying it, and the Avatars mirrored him.

"I don't think I can climb that far." Delilah said sheepishly.

"I know I can't." James said definitely, Tsu'tey just laughed.

"I will go to the very bottom of this hole to burn the sky people out." Ni'win said, Kn'indy gave a nod. Pxay'peyral pursed his lips then bent down below the map to a small box against the wall. He wrenched the door, and let out a pleased 'ah!' before reaching in for two little black boxes.

"A little 'low tech' but we can use them to stay in communication." He handed the first walkie-talkie to Delilah and tucked the other under the edge of his cast.

"My love, can you make this climb?" Kn'indy frowned, finally voicing her concern for him.

Pxay'peyral only smiled comfortingly, "Someone has to show you how to handle the deadly tools, they are like poison, must be carefully handled." Delilah and James looked worried too.

"What if you meet resistance?" James asked.

Pxay'peyral smirked, "I know we will. The elevator is down after all. I'd be more worried if we didn't, because that would mean they were done setting up and I wouldn't want to be around for the big 'boom'." He grinned. James and Delilah looked even more worried, she handed him her camera and addressed them all.

"Good Luck, and Pxay? It really is good to see you again." They all smiled in turn and as one made their way back to the shaft.

"If we don't return before the deadline, give yourself up. I'm sure Max has everything backed up at the lab." Pxay'peyral turned as they went and brought the black box up to his mouth, testing it before they were out of sight. "If the elevator starts coming up before that, it's either us or it isn't. Over." His voice smiled through the crackle.

"I read you." Delilah said back through it.

"Roger, over and out." With that they all began the long decent into darkness.


	13. Chapter 13: He without Kills

**Chapter XIII: He without Kills**

They made amazing time without having to move slowly for the two Avatars, even still it took them four hours, punctuated by the red glow of other floors and the crackle of the receiver asking for a status report each hour, before they finally reached a pool of bright white light which signified the top of the elevator and the last floor. Each of them was breathing heavily, unused to moving on the hard metal surface, but they still managed to land without sound on the top of the seated elevator. Pxay'peyral and Ni'win placed their ears to the top, listening intently. "Two metal skins…" Ni'win closed her eyes, "Three sky people…" She whispered, Pxay'peyral didn't need to confirm what she said, instead trying to listen to what they were saying. He had his eyes closed too and began to mouth words. His brow furrowed in concentration.

After a few seconds he lifted his head, "They have completed setting up the tools and are returning to leave." He whispered. Tsu'ety sneered, drawing his bow and a single arrow. Ni'win copied him, Kn'indy readied her dagger in her teeth. No one noticed Pxay'peyral carried no weapon. "Try not to kill if you can." He said, none need answer him. He bent down and worked a few clasps to unlatch the top of the elevator. Softly he placed the side of his head to the door, holding his hair back, and dipped his head so only the side of his face and a single eye could be visible from those below if they looked. There was no one within the elevator and none directly inside to the corridor. The interior of the elevator was like the same lattice with only a secondary safety screen door. If they jumped down and were seen they would be sitting Ikrans. Pxay'peyral motioned above his head for the Na'vi: one on the left, two on the right, closed fist further back. That would be the AMP. Without discussion each nodded in turn and Pxay'peyral held up a single hand for waiting… and then slipped through.

Kn'indy followed, then Tsu'tey and Ni'win. Pxay'peyral was already lifting the screen as silently as possible. Tsu'tey raised his bow letting fly a single arrow which screamed through the tunnel striking clean through the glass of the AMP. Surprised by the sound of breaking glass all three soldiers turned their heads to see what had happened. Ni'win and Kn'indy flowed forward as one. Kn'indy drove her fist, dagger used like brass knuckles, into the belly of the solider on the left, Ni'win used her bow like a staff and slammed both of the soldiers on the right directly into the wall. The AMP, though half blinded by the broken glass, still moved, rising his gun once the driver got over the shock of barely being skewered by an arrow. Tsu'tey unleashed another arrow just as his gun was raised striking through the triggerer guard and pinning the gun directly into the suit's face while depressing the trigger and forcing the gun to fire continiously and harmlessly into the wall. Ni'win was already running forward with her bow like a great club, heedless to the great noise. She slammed it, like a batter from earth, neatly caving in the glass and flooding the cockpit with Pandora air.

The pilot barely had time to catch his own breath and quickly grab an Exopack before Ni'win reached in and plucked him out, bodily throwing him behind her with a snarl of triumph, as the gun ironically and symbolically ran completely out of ammo. The AMP frozen once it was pilot-less, Pxay'peyral was all over the solider as soon as he hit the ground. First he shoved the mask onto his face hard, making the soldier drop his hands from the gun holstered at his side to reflexively hold the mask from crushing his face. Pxay'peyral then grabbed the gun and threw it aside, the soldier realized what was happening a second too late, holding his mask with one hand and his other reaching for the now empty holster. Pxay'peyral smiled into his mask a mouth full of teeth large enough to fit over his head if he so wished, and hissed a deep breath which fogged the face mask. The Solider raised both his hands. Pxay'peyral turned his exopack on and with a sound thump, knocked the guard out with the top of his palm. By the time the second AMP came around the bend to investigate the commotion, Ni'win had drawn an arrow and stood upon the now empty AMP to fire over its head.

The pilot was so shocked by the sudden appearance of the Na'vi he didn't raise his gun in time when the arrow struck the glass. It didn't pierce it however, but did make the suit stop in its tracks and hesitate. Tsu'tey and stepped aside by this time and released his third arrow, his aim was true striking straight through the glass screen and pinning the sleeve of the driver to his side, effectively making him lift his gun to the side. Ni'win made up for her earlier miss by shouting a war cry and unleashing her second arrow. This one copied Tsu'ety perfectly pinning his other arm by the sleeve into the back of the AMP. Kn'indy was already moving around Ni'win as this happened and the arrow only beat her by a few seconds. She ripped the gun out of the suit's hand as the driver got the foot up, kicking her away. Luckily the gun took most of the force, but Kn'indy was still thrown into the back of the first suit. The Soldier inside already had removed his arms from his sleeves and brought to bear his sidearm.

The wasp retorted thrice through the broken glass, Ni'win had already ducked low, Tsu'tey and Pxay'peyral also hid behind the frame of the first AMP. The soldier used this cover fire to move his AMP back around the corner, and put on an exopack. Ni'win whipped around the AMP, her last arrow in hand, "Kn'indy!" She called, keeping her eyes on corner in case the AMP should flip around it again.

"It is only my arm." She groaned. Pxay'peyral was already running flat out to her side. She looked up at him and grinned; "Now I am closer to you." Her left arm had been hit, in the bicep. Tsu'tey came up with his bow in hand. Pxay'peyral applied pressure with his free hand.

"Tsu'tey, help me." He said firmly, though he could not keep the touch of fear from his voice. Tsu'tey ducked low taking Kn'indy's dagger. He cut a strip of leather from his own loin cloth, a reason they were usually so long, and tied the wound tightly. Kn'indy clenched her teeth but made no other sound. "The bullet passed cleanly through, you will be alright if you do not exert yourself." Pxay'peyral said worriedly. Kn'indy smiled weakly again; by this time they noted the sound of the AMP suit running further down the tunnel. They looked at each other questioningly.

"Does the fool mean to use the sky people fire against us?" Tsu'tey moved to the junction of the tunnel looking quickly. Ni'win moved with him. Pxay'peyral gingerly lifted Kn'indy who cradled her arm but was steady on her feet.

"I don't think he'd be suicidal enough to try and take us with him in the explosion, but there may be another exit or he could be stalling for help to come." Pxay'peyral answered. "My Kn', please help me put all the sky people onto there." He motioned to the elevator, she nodded; Pxay'peyral then lifted the radio to his lips and spoke in English. "Do you read me? Over."

A squawk answered him, "We're here, but you're breaking up."

"Can you check the plans to see if there is another elevator? Over." He breathed, helping Kn'indy and checking to see if the Exopacks worked on the soldiers and increasing the oxygen slightly to keep them out.

"Checking." Delilah's voice called back. After a few minutes. "Pxay? There is another elevator, but its more of a redundancy hatch made for moving lighter things at a faster speed, it's a quarter the size of the other elevator, maybe enough room for a few people."

Pxay'peyral grimaced, "There's the possibility a solider may try to set off the explosion and escape through that elevator, just to be safe we're sending up the service elevator with some unconscious soldiers on it, there's also a gun. If you have to, hostage them until you can get to Grace, get out or give yourselves up, don't fight them. Over." He said quickly tapping a few buttons and placing the gun on the opposite side from the pile of guards.

"Roger… Please be careful." She breathed.

Pxay'peyral didn't answer as he turned to the other Na'vi who waited patiently, "There is another way out, he may try to run and catch us in the fire." He hissed to them in Na'vi. Tsu'tey snarled, utter disgust on his face, he went to retrieve his arrows but found them too deeply buried into the metal. The price for their power.

"Sky people are demons!" he spat with a few other words from his mouth. Pxay'peyral didn't argue, instead pausing and looking at Kn'indy. She read his face;

"I go with you." She said without room for any other words, Pxay'peyral only smiled and closed the safety screen as the elevator slowly began to rise. Pxay'peyral stopped only long enough to pick up the seconded slightly smashed AMP gun, with some difficulty, in one hand. The four then broke into a breathless run after the fleeing AMP. Together they rounded the corner and came to yet another junction, here they found a number of strange cylinders implanted into the wall, Pxay'peyral stopped everyone.

"The explosives!" He gasped; Ni'win flinched slightly at the sight of them, as if they would burn her instantly. Pxay'peyral sat his gun down, and gingerly pulled a single cylinder out. It took only a moment to find the timer, clearing dirt from it he read the time. "He didn't change them." He breathed a sigh of relief, the others shifted restlessly from side to side. "There are only two and a half hours left on the timer here." He said in English.

Tsu'tey breathed a hiss, "What does this mean?"

Pxay'peyral hefted the tube out and set it aside, "It means we have time, to stop the AMP and bring this place down." He grinned. Tsu'ety and Kn'indy returned it. Ni'win danced in place anxiously; Pxay'peyral retrieved his gun and again they set off. They easily caught up with the AMP after this still making his way down the long stretch to another junction.

Ni'win raised her bow. "I can take him." she breathed.

Pxay'peyral shook his head. "Not unless we must." He answered. Tsu'tey gave chase, followed by the others, Ni'win lowered her bow. The soldier was booking it; before him was a large room with several junctions leading into other tunnels, he went down one on the left and then turned his AMP sticking his own hand out to open fire blindly, only leaving his hand with the wasp visible around the corner. Everyone ducked low and to the side. Ni'win growled and Pxay'peyral didn't object as she raised her bow again. Bullets zipped past her as she calmly took aim. With a single twang she loosed her six foot arrow which neatly ripped the gun from his grasp and pinned it to the wall. He cursed in shock and pain, and they could again hear his foot falls.

"Great shot!" Pxay'peyral said impressed, Ni'win smiled.

They moved down the hall after the AMP, with a frown Ni'win found two broken arrow shafts, the pilot had ripped from his AMP so she could not reuse them. They came to the pinned wasp and here too she saw the head had been ruined by the impact with the gun. They were now arrowless. With a tepid sigh all again moved in pursuit, bows and daggers at the ready, Pxay'Peyral hefting the massive gun. They rounded the same corner and saw the AMP up ahead sprinting down another junction, before him a box with a safety screen.

"FREEZE!" Pxay'peyral screamed in English. The AMP didn't even slow itself, Pxay'peyral kneeled down setting the massive gun on his knee and stabilizing it's top with his arm still covered in the cast. "STOP OR I'LL SHOOT!" The AMP continued; Pxay'peyral squeezed the trigger. A torrent of fire spewed from the barrel the force rocked his shoulders, bullets zipped and pinged against the walls. Once he got the feel of the line of fire he swiveled the gun tearing the feet of the AMP into shreds, effectively cutting the legs out from under it. The gun sputtered and then jammed, a result of the AMPs' previous kick, but it was no matter as the suit slammed onto its knees and fell forward. The AMP lifted itself with its hands and then froze in place; they could just make out the sound of boots hitting the dirt, the pilot had jumped out trying to make a run for it. "Persistent bastard." Pxay'peyral tossed the gun aside Tsu'tey cursed, Pxay'peyral however, stopped them and suddenly laughed lightly. Tsu'tey looked at him aggravated, Kn'indy questioningly, and Ni'win sourly. He motioned to the far wall. "Elevators up." He breathed heavily. The Na'vi in turned looked, and they too had smiles split their faces. Kn'indy crouched to the floor.

"Good, I must rest." She huffed, Ni'win knelt to her, Pxay'peyral nodded to Tsu'tey and turned to call down the tunnel.

"Stop and you live." He shouted. The Soldier slowed, obviously seeing the elevator was not there as well and breathing hard. He raised his hands to his head in despair. "I promise you will be unharmed. Surrender." Pxay'peyral called to him. He turned to them, then looked to the shaft as if considering climbing it, and then lowered his head. Shoulders heaving he knelt in the dirt with his hands on his head. Pxay'peyral nodded, Tsu'tey stalked down the hall past the fallen AMP. Pxay'peyral lifted the walkie-talkie, "Deliah do you copy? Over." He said in English. Again the box squawked to life.

"Pxay?" The voice said.

Pxay'peyral smile, "Everything okay up there? Over."

"Yeah, the elevator just got here, soldiers are still out and we got the gun. What's happening? We heard gunfire." The voice asked with an edge of worry.

"We cleared everybody out and caught the last soldier, the timers still say about two hours, so we can still position the explosives. I'm kind of at a loss for how to get out of here afterwards though. Over." He crouched down, a position of rest like the others, Tsu'tey crouched over the last soldier who was now prone beneath him.

"I think we have another problem." James's voice squawked. "Remember the guards you knocked on the head?"

Pxay'peyral smiled, deepening his voice, "I didn't mean to jog 'em so hard." Kn'indy looked at him quizzically, a smile ear to ear. Ni'win huffed in exasperation. Tsu'tey actually chuckled.

"Well it's been hours, they _had_ to have been discovered by now, yet we haven't seen a single response from anyone." James replied, zero mirth in his voice. Pxay'peyral frowned then too and puffed his cheeks out.

"And here I thought everything was going so well." He said to himself. "Yeah that's a bad sign. Over."

"So what do we do?"

Pxay'peyral turned his head, looking at the prone soldier. "Hold on, I'll ask. Over." He then walked over to the soldiers and rolled him over. Face inches away from his mask he bared his sharp teeth in a not so friendly grin. "So meaty delicious bones, got any ideas why we haven't had company?" Tsu'tey smirked. The soldier paled, but for his part set his jaw. Pxay'peyral wasn't fazed, "Do you think you'd taste better with Barbeque or Steak sauce?" He pondered tilting his head to the side, the solider still tried to regain his breath, but didn't answer. "Which do you want Tsu'tey, leg or wing?" He looked up, Tsu'tey grinned widely.

"I prefer the _eyes_." He said it directly to the soldier, flashing his own. The soldier's breath picked up and he squirmed just a little.

"Mmmm, finger licking good." Pxay'peyral licked his teeth in one slow motion while reaching out and pinching his sides.

This was too much for the poor soldier, "T-the Na'vi aren't cannibals!" He all but squealed.

Pxay'peyral looked at him puzzled, and then looked to Tsu'ety with exaggerated disappointment. "We aren't?"

Tsu'tey shook his head in slight disgust, "Of course not!" The soldier relaxed somewhat. "but, he is not Na'vi." The soldier's eyes bulged and he began spilling his guts, before his guts were spilled.

"W-we've got orders to capture or k-kill any resistance and remove any recording devices they have, and f-failing that keep them occupied long enough to ferret them out." He stammered all but screeching. A frown cut Pxay'peyral's face.

"Delilah, James do you copy? Over." He said quickly.

"We're here." The voice came back, again edged with worry for his tone.

"It looks like we've activated his trap card, you guys have to get out and warn Grace before he deactivates your Avatars. Over." Pxay' responded.

"How do we do that? Won't they be waiting for us?" Pxay'peyral paused, thinking quickly. He looked around him at the Na'vi who looked back at him.

"We fight!" Tsu'tey hissed. Pxay'peyral shook his head.

"Without arrows we are dead to their guns." Pxay answered. Tsu'tey spat again, his tail lashing. Kn'indy and Ni'win were silent. Pxay'peyral rubbed the radio into his forehead. Then. "Alright, listen up. Plan hasn't changed, hop on the elevator and come on down, I'll need your help to replace the explosive in key areas. Then we'll load up all the soldiers and hostage our way back to the fence. Sound good? Over." There was silence for a moment, then the radio squawked a reply.

"R-Roger." And with that Pxay'peyral motioned for Kn'indy and spoke Na'vi.

"My Kn', stay with this one and warn us if this box starts to come down." He motioned to the elevator. "Tsu'tey, Ni'win, help me move the sky people tools so we can collapse this place." They all nodded in turn. Kn'indy took Tsu'teys place crouched over the soldier who was again on his belly, she rested her dagger between his shoulders.

"Be careful My Pxay." She said urgently.

He winked at her, eliciting a bemused and perplexed grin. Thankfully they had all finally caught their breath by now so it was much easier to double back, remove the cylinders from the walls and begin replacing them throughout the mine. None of them really knew where the best places for maximum collapse were, but Pxay'peyral guessed piling them around the center and around obvious supports would be best, so they got to work moving as many as they could find. The main elevator came to rest on their floor as the timer hit the two hour mark. The Avatars joined them and immediately helped them adjust a few of the cylinders in other places, James took the camera tucked gently in the joint of Pxay'peyral's elbow back while Delilah was particular about where some should go. The timers read one hour and thirty minutes when they had done a satisfactory job, and everyone began loading up on the main elevator. Everyone was grinning and elated about their success, yet still tense about the escape when James struck the buttons to return them to the surface. Nothing happened. James tried again as all eyes turned to him. Still nothing happened, no matter how many times he pressed the buttons.

"FfffffffffffffANtatsic." Pxay'peyral hissed. They all looked to each other, no one really wanting to make the long climb up the shaft especially now that they knew there would a large reception for them. James slammed his fist into the wall and cursed violently.

Delilah chewed her lip and asked, "Do we try the other elevator?"

Pxay'peyral shrugged with one arm, "They probably have that one stuck at the top."

But James was shaking his head, "No no, wait wait, I can do this." He moved to the buttons and began pulling at a panel. With a wrench he removed the small door and began inspecting the mass of wires. "I took an engineering class once, I've got a Phd, this can't be that hard." Delilah kneeled down with him and studied the contents of the box.

Pxay'peyral licked his lips, "Remember it's the red wire, not the blue wire." He said off handedly.

Ni'win's ears perked and she craned her neck, "Do you hear?" The Na'vi turned their head to her, all silenced. The sound of a rattling cage came down the tunnel.

"The other elevator?" Delilah breathed.

Pxay'peyral laid his ears flat, "Reinforcements." He said, Tsu'tey frowned deeply. "Keep working doc, we'll try and hold them off." Pxay'peyral motioned to the other Na'vi except Kn'indy. "Guard them, and watch him." he pointed to the soldier who laid face down on the elevator floor.

Kn'indy nodded, the silent plea for him in her eyes was all she need say. James handed Pxay'peyral the lone wasp taken from the soldier. It felt and looked like a toy in his Na'vi hands. He smiled in thanks then he, Tsu'ety, and Ni'win flowed down the halls again. Pxay'peyral spared a single glance at the first AMP, looking longingly at the empty gun pinned to the machine's face. They rounded the corners, and came to a stop at the room of many junctions. Pxay'peyral ducked his head around the corner then did an impressive twirl to the other side, taking cover on the far right with Ni'win behind Tsu'tey on the left. Pxay'peyral went to his knees and ducked his head around the corner. The elevator still hadn't landed yet. Tsu'tey held his bow in one hand and a dagger in the other, as did Ni'win. They waited in grim silence. The abandoned AMP still sat like it couldn't quite finish its pushup. And Pxay'peyral smiled.

Silently he motioned for Tsu'tey and Ni'win to wait for him as he moved down to it. They waited, watching him poke and search the machine. Triumphantly Pxay'peyral hefted a tiny red tube with a black protrusion like a flower on its top. "Beeeeeayooutiful!" He drew out the Na'vi word and smacked his lips against it. Then he tip-toed exaggeratedly toward the elevator, raised the screen, and looked up carefully. He then set the smaller cylinder upright directly under it and ran back to the waiting Na'vi. Who looked at him curiously the whole time. Tsu'tey shrugged his shoulders at him when he came back to his position opposite them, giggling. Pxay'peyral lifted his free hand and copied the sounds of the elevator. "Skreeeeeeeeeech." He motioned it coming down, then pointed his gun before him. "Bang bang! Pting! KFOOWSsshshhsshshshsshshshsh." He moved his hand around wildly, sticking his tongue out and spitting out a mist over it. The Na'vi barely managed to hold their perplexed laughter, despite the seriousness of the moment, and instead both nodded approvingly. Then Ni'win giggled and clapped her hand over her mouth, looking at them both in surprise.

"Pxay'peyral…" Tsu'tey grinned admiringly, "You are not such a demon."

Pxay'peyral grinned back like the Palulukan who swallowed the Ikranay, "Oh yes I am."

Tsu'tey scoffed, and they returned their attention to the elevator. Pxay'peyral kneeled again and took careful aim placing his firing arm on the wrist of his heavily bark wrapped arm. They waited a few tense moments as the box slowly descended with an ear splitting rattle, Pxay'peyral slowed his breathing, finding it hard to work his larger finger in the smaller trigger. As soon as the bottom of the elevator came into view he shouted, "Cover your ears!" and opened fire, two shots hit the dirt, but the third hit the miniature fire extinguisher. A resounding 'POOM' rocked the bottom of the elevator and hurt their covered ears, collectively leaving them ringing slightly as a massive cloud of white foamy mist filled the corridor and drifted past their feet. The elevator screeched in complaint and if they hadn't already been nearly deaf, they would have been now, as it crashed to the ground with the sound of heavy falling metal. Ni'win cheered, Tsu'tey laughed rubbing his hands over his flat ears. Pxay'peyral grinned.

Ni'win stepped around the corner carefully staying low. They didn't hear any soldiers trying to recover, no AMP trying to right itself, and especially, no return fire. They waited for the mist to clear slightly when Ni'win stood and then looked at Tsu'tey and then Pxay'peyral quizzically. "It is empty." She remarked; she had no time for more words as a massive metal body slammed down through the roof of the elevator and landed with a resounding impact and twin shoulder mounted miniguns roared, unleashing a wall of death. Ni'win leapt as soon as the AMP landed but even then she, one of the fastest of the Na'vi, could not escape twelve thousand rounds per minute unscathed. Her forelegs were reduced to tatters. As she landed in a roll beside Tsu'tey, crying out in pain, Pxay'peyral stared with open shock and Tsu'tey fell to her in horror. She was known for her speed, but with her wounds, she would never run again… if she lived. Pxay'peyral screamed in impotent rage, firing the wasp around the corner while only exposing his hand.

The AMP returned fire, the hateful sound tearing the far walls with impact after impact and making a cloud of black dust. Tsu'tey shreded his and her loin cloths to wrap her legs as best he could while Ni'win rolled in agony. Pxay'peyral called out raising his voice over the constant stream of gunfire. "TSU'TEY!" He turned to him, "TAKE HER TO KN', STOP THE BLEEDING!" Pxay shouted. Tsu'tey frowned, wanted to stay, but he knew Ni'win would die if they did not stop the flow of blood. Tsu'tey grimaced.

"I will come back!" He said, drowned in the gunfire.

Pxay'peyral nodded anyway, catching the meaning from his burning eyes alone. Tsu'tey strung their bows around his back and lifted the now still Na'vi in his arms. As he raced away, the gunfire stopped. He heard the sound of wrenching metal and then a heavy, familiar, foot step. A loud speaker crackled to life with a high pitched whine. "At-ten-tion all Na-vi scum, and traitorous dogs. You have as-_saulted_ and fired upon RDA personnel and are _tres-_passing, on R-D-A property, …you have ten seconds to surrender or you will be killed." The voice was unmistakable, the cadence precise and factual. Colonel. Miles. Quaritch. Head of security for Hell's Gate in his own personal AMP modified with reinforced glass and outer frame, improved precision, with enough weapons to empty an entire village with ammo to spare, and an orange colored Chinese dragon painted bold on the side. Pxay'peyral hissed through his teeth as his still broken arm throbbed in the heavy bark cast, his legs shook from prolonged fatigue. He checked his gun… He had five rounds left. "One."


	14. Chapter 14: The Gamer Falls

**Chapter XIV: The Gamer Falls**

"Two." Alright. Let's not forget to breathe here.

"Three." There is no way I can beat his suit with my little gun.

"Four." I can't get to the others without being shot and worse, leading him to them and getting them shot.

"Five." Ni'win needs time to get bandaged, James needs time to get the elevator working, we all need time.

"Six." And I need to not die.

"Seven." There was only one thing I could think to do;

"Hey Quaritch…how does it feel to betray your own race?" I shot down the corridor with my voice. It worked too, apparently, because he stopped counting and didn't fire. There was a moment where I clearly imagined his confused face. He didn't answer though so I figured Id better continue poking the dragon with a stick… oh why oh why? "You heard me!" I shouted.

"Identify yourself." He commanded; typical, no comeback? Insert authority.

"They call me sonic because I'm blue and eat up so many miles." I leaned against the wall heavily, trying to give my legs a little bit of time to rest as well as my burning arm. There was another moment of silence, but I could swear I felt the contempt radiating from him as he figured out who I was; Na'vi speaking English, check. Smart ass? Check.

"Well, well, well." Yup, he got it. "So our little science project is still running, you're a little blue energizer bunny aren't you? Frankly I am impressed son, I never thought that kind of Frankenstein voodoo would lead to anything." Now I was making the confused face, this was going beyond swapping taunts. "Of course it makes sense now don't it? The defective brain."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I laughed, but didn't feel it.

"More defective then I realized." He smirked; "I tell you what, let's make a trade before I fill you full o' holes." Okay, this was just getting weird. "You tell me what you mean, and I'll do the same." His voice was completely unworried, he knew he had us right in the palm of his iron fist, he could close the fingers anytime. "What do you mean betray my own race."

"Humanity came to Pandora with the hope of finding a new life! A place where they could live while earth recovered from our global suicide, none of the mineral or deposit crap mattered in the beginning, it was all about finding a place where humanity could escape and survive! A second chance!" I shouted, not bothering to hide the venom in my voice. "We were doing fine, establishing communication, learning, finding ways to share this world; and then they found that damn metal. Suddenly it was all about the money;" This time I felt the laugh. "We travel six _light years_ to an _entirely_ new world and just to make the exact same god damn mistakes." His replied without a hint of shame.

"Pandora is a hell hole, the only "second chance" we got is in the blood, sweat, and tears of the men who have worked hard to pull from the ground that 'new hope for mankind' you all want so much. But do you work for it? No, you and the other science pukes frolic in the grass, making daisy chains while people back on earth, _your_ home planet, are dying." The accusation was iron in his throat. "You want humanity? You want survival? It's right there in the dirt, bringing more prosperity and progress to earth then we ever had before. Hell, the Na'vi aren't even using it." His voice was without a single slice of remorse.

"You're destroying _their_ world one acre at a time, just like we did to _our_ world, you think that's noble?" I shouted back at him, with the same iron.

"So what?" He spat. "You expect me to feel bad because we dug up a few trees? Every garden has weeds, son, do you feel bad when you gotta prune your roses?" The disgust was clear in his voice. "Mankind has always had to fight for his place, if the world doesn't like it, it can do something about it, and we'll fight that too. Isn't that what survival is? You expect me to believe dieing cold and hungry in the mud because you're afraid to burn some dead logs for a camp fire is any more noble? Wake up."

"No, you wake up!" I screamed, "You're aren't just burning dead logs or pulling weeds, you're removing entire strips or forest and everything that lives with it, there is more life per square inch on Pandora then there ever was in the entirety of the Amazon. You're just burning all of it, destroying without care or concern to what we could be missing! For god's sake think about it Quaritch! There could be a cure for cancer, world hunger or clean unlimited energy out there and we wouldn't even know because we're so obsessed with the same old tired and faulty rock scraping we've done for thousands of years!"

"Because it works!" He was shouting now too. "You want to talk about God? You think you've found a new Garden of Eden out there with all your little blue friends sitting around in a circle, singing Kumbaya? You think this 'Eywa' will just welcome you with open arms because now you're blue like them? Well you ain't like them! You're in a stolen, man made, body. They'll never accept you, this world will never accept you, no Thanator is going to give you a nice gentle hug, look out the fucking window, everything wants to kill you, their ain't no balance, their ain't no respect or honor out there. It here!" He was practically roaring, I heard him slam his metal fists against his suit. "Right here in the hands of _men_! We keep the balance, our laws, our discipline, our trust; _we_ make it fair. Just look at yourself, a mentally unstable, overweight man, infiltrating a top secret compound with a body like an Olympic athlete. You think you ever could have gotten where you are without us? _We_ put you in that body, not some invisible god dangling in a tree!" He paused, then he chuckled with a calm acusation, "You know, I seem to recall another thing dangling in a tree in that garden you so love, a forest animal that swore on the benefits of eatin' fruit."

"You don't know anything about me!" I roared back. "I helped make this happen, I risked my mind, _my soul_, in making this work! Not for me, not even for Grace, but for _you_! Because you and your guns, your machines came along and ruined our chance! The only sin here is that metal, and you all began scooping it up right and left! Earth didn't need it, mankind didn't need it, _it's_ the temptation, _it's_ the distraction. _You_ look out the window; everything works here, everything is connected, everything eats everything else, relies on everything else, no more, no less; if one thing disappears, _everything suffers_. _Just_ like it did on earth before we screwed that up too. _That's_ fair, _that's_ the law; Man is strong enough to adapt to it without destroying it, we did before, the Na'vi do it now. We can learn from them, they can learn from us, _we_ have to make sure that bridge isn't broken, burned, or bombed. The RDA knows this, the Avatar program was created to fix your mistake!"

"My mistake?" His voice was cold steel. "Now who doesn't know who?"

His AMP stepped forward, wrenching itself free of the elevator wreckage. "Do you know why I'm here? Why they chose me, why they sent me? Because _I_ get things done. I'm the one who made it safe for all your little science experiments, _I'm_ the one who makes it safe for those very scientists to sleep at night. You think your little team would have learned half of what it has if I didn't cut back the wilderness and keep a steady gun pointed at the heads of every blood thirsty creature that would love nothing more than to 'fairly' take off your head? I'm the one who gave you the chance to prance around in that 'Avatar' body, I'm the one who bled to set the ground work for your 'hard work'. You wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for _me_. And answer me this. What if the Na'vi weren't so friendly?" My hands were shaking now, and no words came to my lips.

"Think about it. If the Na'vi were just as hostile and blood thirsty as everything else on this rock. What would you have done then? What would you have done if they wanted nothing more then to wipe us out? Where would Humanities' second chance be then? Who would you come crying to the second the Na'vi gave you a black eye? The truth is son, you need me." I wanted to reply; I wanted to deny everything he said… I wanted too… "You need men like me who won't back down, who will put their lives on the line so _our_ people. Have _a_ chance. You think you've paid your dues because you spent a few years in a lab making a puppet without strings? I've been here since the beginning, I was here before Pandora was even a speck in your eye." I heard the AMP step forward. "You see this?" He shouted defiantly, waiting. I had to lean out, I had to look. He was pointing the metal hand at his skull, through the glass at his scars.

"I once thought like you did. That's why I came here. Full of hope and soft hearted 'ideals'. I thought Pandora would be different from the meat grinder that is ignorant men, like it was on earth in countless altercations. I thought maybe, just maybe, man was the root cause of all conflict and needless death. _This_ is what I got for my open hand. Oh yeah, we came in peace, and this world tried to chew us up like everything else. It's a war out there just like anywhere, the only difference is the shape of the bodies being chopped up. Make no mistake, this is a meat grinder boy. There was no place for man in this balance, not until _I made one_." By now I was completely out in the open, completely vulnerable. He could have ended me anytime he wanted, but he just looked at me. The same hard look he gave one of his recruits who doubted themselves. He was actually trying to make me understand, as if there was some part of him that, no, every part of him believed what he was doing was right. And for the life of me, I started to believe.

It was true, I knew. Without the security fences and the guns and the blood shed I could have woken up with a viperwolf at the foot of my bed. We never would have gotten near the Na'vi if he didn't cut away a part of the forest to give us somewhere to stand. Him and all the soldiers who gave their lives to make sure humanity could even set foot on Pandora… humans were really amazing. "I know life ain't been easy on you out there, it's easy to get lost in the woods. But you put that gun down and come in with me, and we'll see about getting you back where you belong." Here he was, offering an open hand. A pardon. The sky people, my original people, humans. On top of their potential for destruction was their potential for forgiveness and cooperation. He, Colonel Miles Quaritch, was reaching out to me.

He was right. If our situation had been reversed, if the Na'vi had come to earth with superior technology and the desire to wipe us out, we would have needed men like him. Men who did what they had to do, no questions asked, no apologies. He would have been a hero, a saint… I could never have stood in his boots. The gun fell from my hand, five rounds unspent. My heart sick with all that had happened to me, without reason. In front of me, Quaritch took on a more relaxed position. "Thataboy." He said simply. With no more venom, no more iron, just a simple word of acceptance and approval. My chance for a normal life, back among my people, were I came from… where I belonged. I began walking forward. Then, a face: Kn'indy.

The Na'vi who had saved my life, when I had ran from the soldier who shot me, she who had swooped in from nowhere to save me from the Toruk who saw me only as food. Pandora, mankind, both had hurt me… she had bonded with me without my knowing, but only to help me, risking herself, throwing away her options for love for life, to help me. She could have been lost, because I was bond cut by the Na'vi. And my human body had… had… I froze. Taking a second look at Qauritch. Was he offering me this pardon, this second chance because of some guilt for putting me in this position? It was his own hands which ripped me from that bed; it was his hands which condemned me to these hardships. "Something on your mind." He asked, his voice going on edge again.

I thought fast. "Well, I just, it's your turn right?" I grasped. He smiled half heartedly, showing immaculate teeth behind his inches thick glass shell.

"You mean the Frankenstein thing?" he said good naturedly. I waited for him to continue, watching him interested, trying not to show I was having second thoughts. "That's just a little joke, classified info, kind of need to know." He tried to shrug it off, but with that same edge of warning again clear in his voice.

"Well, there's no going back. I'm stuck like this, in this body, so I think I should know…"

His face lit up then, as if there was some kind of joke I had missed the punch line to, he even easily avoided the accusation about 'no going back'. "Who said you were stuck?"

My eyes widened, did he mean what I think he…? "What do you mean? What about my body?" I took half a step back.

He must have mistook what I was asking though because he became more agitated, more eager for me to be closer to his grasp. "The Prometheus project, a contingency to what you know as the Avatar program, was made with a goal in mind that there may be an outcome other than peaceful negotiations." he said firmly.

My head was beginning to spin, I took a single step back, I felt a dread deep within me. "What are you talking about?"

"You can't have not noticed by now; why would we allow a mentally unstable mind in such a costly position? Millions if not billions of dollars of research invested in to the first Avatar every created for the program?" he looked at me suspiciously.

I took another step back. "That's just because they were still perfecting the creation of it, t-they streamlined production now, so it's a lot cheaper." I said it, but my voice shook and he knew it.

"Do you really think they wouldn't take the chance to tinker? You are a prototype, a fusion of Na'vi and human DNA; the first of it's kind. Do you really think they would risk letting you have one weakness?"

My hands were shaking harder now, "Are you saying they specially selected my genes?" I took another step back.

His hungry smile hit me like a bullet in the gut, "The best of the best, perfection of _un_natural selection." he said jovially.

My world shook, my mind raced, my body reeled. All the scars, all the blood loss, I should be dead a thousand times over by now. I thought it was my will, but my body kept surviving, recovering faster than any Na'vi; growing stronger, quicker, and larger than any Na'vi ever needed to be. I could do things no Na'vi could, my body bounced back, adapted, and grew stronger. My broken arm didn't even hurt as badly as it use it, my body was still standing even after all that strenuous exercise, even after I just got off my death bed. It was impossible, but, it was the only thing that made sense… I even survived having my nervous system severed. "B-But you said yourself, I'm mentally unstable, why would they give me this kind of body? Why put me in such a weapon?" I grasped in the darkness.

"Come on now…" He said, his voice making my heart grow cold. "A highly educated scientist with numerous diplomas and academic accolades or a barely college educated game tester with a background of weak mental stability… who do you think would be easier to control?" It couldn't be true, but I knew it was. They had planned to use me all along. That's what the meeting was for, that's why they let me in the program. It had to be true, I was scared of them, just grateful they would give me the chance to continue doing what I could for Grace. They used my naïve dedication against me, my own fear of uselessness and worthlessness because of my past. It was… inhuman.

"No." I mouthed, taking another step back, but words wouldn't come out.

Quaritch's face was steel, realizing he had lost me… but he didn't drop his grin. "Oh yes. Imagine our surprise when you actually grew a pair and defied us the very next chance you got. Though I still think it was more because of that red headed bitch queen then any stones you might have had." he sneered.

For some reason the insult to Grace made my heart burn. Feeling returned to my legs, my hands stilled. "Don't talk about Grace like that!" I bared my fangs, my tail lashined, my ears pulled back. He didn't look impressed.

Slowly he advanced his AMP three steps, eating up the distance between us; he stood on the opposite side of the fallen AMP from before, near its head, while I was near its feet and still well within range of his deadly guns. "And what do you think you're going to do now? Beat me? With one arm tied? Make a run for it? I'll cut your legs right out from under you and haul your sorry blue ass back to the slab. I'm sure the body will survive, it seems to survive damn near everything else. Then once we got you inside, we'll do something about that …rebellious streak."

I knew he meant brainwashing. I knew he wouldn't mind if I was killed. They could still salvage the body, use the DNA, if my soul departed this husk, all the better. My hands were shaking again, but this time out of pure, unimaginable, rage. "I may not be able to out run your bullets." He smirked, taking another heavy step closer and seting the suit in a fighters pose. "I may not even be able to beat that suit." I looked up at him, my eyes as hard and pierceing as I could make them. "But I don't have too. Not alone." His smile dropped just a little bit. "TSU'TEY NOW!" I screamed behind him. He swung his suit sideways, bringing his assault gun around.

By the time he realized his suit hadn't warned him of any other living thing there but me, I was already running forward. He growled, trying to bring his suit and guns back around, but I was already moving up the fallen AMP. His guns began their deadly roar hitting the wall in a line of death, but I was already jumping upward, painfully straightening my left arm. He stopped firing for a split second, knowing it was useless to shoot as I fell down upon him in an arch. He tried to bring the side of his gun up and block me, but in that split second, his bulky suit could not compensate for the lag between human and machine, the poor connection… I slammed my left fist into the glass, my bark hardened left arm like a steel hammer, like the fist of an angry god.

The metal and glass was no match for the sheer force of Na'vi bones, bark, and my leap. It caved like a spider web, blinding him, and my hand stopped inches from his face. I ripped my arm back and would have been shredded had the bark not spared my flesh. My arm had gone completely numb from the shock, the only reason I didn't black out was the adrenaline surging through my veins. Pandoran air flooded his suit, drowning the man inside in his little bubble; "I don't need to beat the suit! Just the weak, tiny man inside it!" I screamed in fury. He let out a ragged gasp and his suit jerked a few times before he cut off control of it to reach for his Exopack, but by then I was already running. I heard his enraged yell as he again unleashed a wall of death, fireing his hand held gun, all of his guns, at once but I was already around the corner. My heart was pounding, my arm hanging without feeling, uselessly by my side. My teeth were clenched and grinding, I fell against the wall when I turned the second corner, where I met Tsu'tey. His face relaxed in relief at first, then wilted in horror at my shattered arm.

"I heard you call for me." he said fearfully.

"Help me brother, I can not stand. Is James done, how is Ni'win?" I said, my tongue slipping due to the strain. Tsu'tey looked behind me as the gun fire continued along with Quaritch's roar.

"We are ready, she is alive." He said simply, taking me by my free arm as I staggered. We didn't say anything more as he all but carried me to the others. Ni'win was lying upon the elevator floor, pale, but breathing. James and Delilah were also pale, but from fear at what they had heard. When they saw us, when Kn'indy saw me, her expression hurt me more then my body. Probably as much as the sight of me hurt her.

"I am well, we must go!" I said to all of them. No one needed anything else, Tsu'tey barely set me down when the elevator slowly began to lift. The sound of gunfire stopped and we heard the rhythmic pounding of Quaritch's AMP as he gave chase. The bottom of the elevator just cleared the ceiling when we saw his now canopy-less AM P suit still running toward us. He didn't begin shooting when he saw it rising, he didn't even slow down. We learned why when we lost sight of him, we heard a guttural war cry, and the elevator jerked and shook. He jumped in the suit, dropping his gun, and grabbed onto the bottom of the elevator. "Move to the sides!" I screamed, as instantly the floor below us began to buckle from his heavy fists. We did our best to move away, but there was nothing we could do. The elevator was rocking dangerously, use to much greater weight, but not use to the constant shifting of the swinging amp suit.

"What do we do? What do we do!" James panicked.

I rolled my head, barely keeping my eyes open. Everyone was looking to me. "Go back down, crush him." I barely got out, it was all I could think of.

"Right, down!" James said, but as he turned… his eyes rolled and his body fell.

"Oh!" Delilah said with an almost comical expression of surprise, but not seconds later, her body fell too. They found them. None of the Na'vi knew how James had rigged the elevator. Kn'indy gasped and checked their bodies, they still breathed, but I knew their drivers were captured.

Tsu'tey barred his teeth, "Cowards! Demons! They have left us!" taking out his dagger, he growled, waiting. We might have had a chance to strike at Quaritch through his open suit, if he didn't cut us down with the shoulder mounted mini guns first. Once he broke through...

"The other shaft." I mumbled, I wanted to sleep, so badly.

Kn'indy heard me though, but she despaired, tears falling as she grabbed my face. "We can not carry all!" she cried.

I shook my head, trying to clear it. "No, leave soldiers an' Avatars, don't stop, jump off, climb up." I tried to stay with them, even as the pounding of Quaritch's fist faded. The whole world started to fade. They said something more, something about what to do when we got to the top, how to get past the soldiers, but the black ring around my eyes didn't wait for them. I knew the soldiers would be fine, and it didn't matter what happened to the Avatars if the elevator continued to the top. The soldiers there would simply retrieve them, but the Na'vi would have to somehow fight past them, even if they surprised them by climbing out the other shaft… where ever it led. But I could not worry for them, could not tell them, I could not even speak. I turned to Kn'indy, her golden eyes looked into me and I saw her calling me without sound. I loved her so much… she was the light of my darkness… and that darkness took me.


	15. Chapter 15: Ends and Beginnings

**Chapter XV: Ends and Beginnings**

Pxay'peyral wasn't moving, just like the other two Avatars. Kn'indy didn't understand what happened to them, though Tsu'tey was certain they had abandoned them. Ni'win was still unconscious, the demon skin was still hammering at the bottom of the box. Pxay'peyral had said something about jumping off and climbing the other shaft, leaving the 'soldiers' and the 'Avatars'. Meaning they should carry Ni'win out of there, but, did he mean for them to leave him behind? "What do we do?" Kn'indy cried to Tsu'tey who stood in rippling anger. Indecision clear on his face; he still had his dagger out, bouncing, wanting nothing more then to end the source of the incessant pounding below them. Kn'indy looked at Ni'win. Her legs were useless to her, but Kn'indy's arm was useless to her. If Tsu'tey carried Ni'win, who would carry Pxay'peyral? Again Kn'indy felt despair well within her, but she would never leave him behind. Never. "Tsu'tey, will you carry him?" she begged.

He looked to her, his face a grimace, he no longer trusted any of the sky people and that might have spilled onto Pxay'peyral… but Tsu'tey had promised he would return. It was obvious Pxay'peyral had stayed behind, holding off the demon skin with only his toy sky gun. He had done something to his arm too, and when he returned he could barely stand. Tsu'tey owed him still. With a hiss he sheathed his knife, and bent to lift the much wider body. With some difficulty he got him over his shoulders. Kn'indy did her best to lift Ni'win as well as she could over her own shoulders, even though her arm pained her greatly.

"We must jump off!" she said, edging closer to the front of the moving box. Tsu'tey said nothing as he waited for the next opening, even as Quaritch pounded away and small splits appeared in the metal hill that was rising in the center of the floor. Just before it ruptured, the opening to the next level came, Tsu'tey called warning, and stepped up before the elevator reached level. Kn'indy waited a few second and then made the step as well just as the metal hand tore through and began folding the floor aside. They were off running, hoping the way would be the same as the floor below, they did not know what they would do if it was not, or even how they would make the climb with such heavy bodies and Kn'indy only having good use of one arm. Quaritch barely caught sight of them running down the red corridor and immediately stopped ripping his way up, instead he swung with a yell of effort and landed to follow them.

He flicked on the front lights of his suit, and pounded after them. In the slowly rising elevator the soldier who was still conscious stood up, looking after his unconscious fellows and the Avatars. The heavy steps of his machine drove them on like the baying of a hound, the two pools of light, a death sentence if it should fall upon them. The Na'vi could see very well in the dark, and though they were swift, they were also burdened. They barely kept ahead of the lights, as the AMPs greater stride closed the distance, Quaritch caught the sight of a blue tail and with a shout of triumph began to fire. His guns had barely begun to roar when a still greater sound swallowed them all, the very floor beneath their feet shook and rose. The timers had reached zero.

Quaritch, in his recklessness confidence had not even bothered to tell them to stop the countdown, so sure was he in getting the job done. The foolishness of that decision hit him like his suit hit the ceiling, the gun flattening under the force, his AMP was thrown like a rag doll. If he had not been in his suit, it probably would have killed him. The Na'vi were sent sprawling with cries of terror. With a sicken lurch in their stomachs, the ground drooped from under them, clouds of black dust bloomed, they fell several feet. It was over in an instant however and the ground again rested flat. The Na'vi who could, scrambled to their feet coughing; surprisingly, Ni'win and Pxay'peyral had regained consciousness at the rough treatment, their bodies recognizing they had to move or perish. Kn'indy tried to help Pxay'peyral get to his feet, Tsu'tey simply lifted Ni'win bodily. The explosions below, muffled by thousands of feet of dirt, continued; a dead 'thoom thoom thoom' reminded them the ground would still shift, the whole room would soon cave in.

They looked up in horror as the rain of dirt lessened, seeing clearly that all that remained was great slabs of rock and stone which had come together, locked, the only reason they were not crushed. With another start they heard a rough groan of effort, Quaritch was freeing himself from his useless AMP. Tsu'tey snarled, blood thirst clear in his eyes, he could end the little man easily with his dagger. He had almost set Ni'win down and moved forward when Pxay'peyral held out his good arm to still him. Wordlessly Tsu'tey looked at Pxay'peyral leaning heavily on Kn'indy. As the room shook and dirt fell, as Quaritch looked on in hard disbelief, Pxay'peyral pleaded with his eyes. A dead look; as he knew he could not stop Tsu'tey, knew Tsu'tey was justified in his rage, but he still begged all the same. Tsu'ety looked to him without expression. He turned his head back to Ni'win in his arms, who looked back at him, as did Kn'indy. He spared another look at Quaritch who waited on his belly, barely able to stand, blood on his forehead …and Tsu'tey turned away. Laying his ears flat he moved forward, they were now even. Pxay'peyral stood on his own feet, shakily and turned back, reaching his hand out to Quaritch as Kn'indy looked on in awe. "Come on, I'll carry you." He rasped in English.

Quaritch looked at him in sheer disbelief. The room shook constantly, a rumble growing like the angry bellow of some beast of the deep. In one sudden motion Quaritch lifted his side arm, pointing it directly at Pxay'peyral's forehead. Kn'indy cried out, trying to move in front of him. He steadied her, and his eyes stared in to Quaritch. Quaritch stared back at him, breathing through the mask, finger on the trigger. Death was a breath away for all of them. Slowly, he lowered his gun. "This ain't over." He said, his face hard and he turned, running from them into the tunnel. Kn'indy and Pxay'peyral watched him disappear into the darkness, and she pulled Pxay'peyral away. Pxay'peyral and Kn'indy made their way back to Tsu'tey and Ni'win who waited for them, once he saw them his eyes lit up though no smile touched his face. The shaft was just ahead of them, they were almost ou- another explosion rocked them all and suddenly the ceiling began to fall in front of them.

With a speed seen only once in a lifetime, Pxay'peyral shot forward, he lifted his free arm as the massive stone landed squarely on his shoulder. Pxay'peyral was stronger than any Na'vi ever had to be, the strongest combination of the strongest genes from two of the strongest peoples in the universe… the stone drove him down onto a knee, his right arm straining, his left knee hitting the ground... but the stone stopped. In wordless awe the Na'vi lifted their heads, the lights of Pxay'peyral's body flashed once more, the spiral of a universes in the darkness of the black clouds. He was mighty, unfathomably strong, but he could not hold up the world. The rock shifted again, and he drove both his arms forward into the ground, the massive stone fell upon his back. There was a sickening crack of bones, and the most terrible scream of pain ever heard beneath the ground of Pandora. But the stone stopped.

The world shook around them, Kn'indy dragged herself forward, "My love!" She screamed in shared agony. They all stared unbelieving; Pxay'peyral's head looked forward, his hair caught under the rock keeping it lifted

"C-Crawl through!" His voice gargled, blood spilling out. Hurriedly they squirmed beneath his arms, locked in place where the joints were pulped, the bones with reinforced carbon locking together, though never moving again. He made a cage with body, holding back the sheer mass of rocks, just enough to allow them to pass between his arms and lowered leg. Tsu'tey could not drop the awe from his face as he moved beneath him, Pxay'peyral blood falling upon all of them. He turned then to drag Ni'win through, wordlessly. Kn'indy was the last to go, but she stopped and kneeled before him.

"My love!" She grieved, for though she tried to pull him free, she knew he would never move again. Tsu'ety shouted for her as Ni'win clung around his back. The shaft was only a step away, a pillar of light, a way to freedom.

"We must go!" He called to her, more for Pxay'peyral then anything.

"I WILL NOT LEAVE HIM!" She shouted, never removing her eyes from his.

Tsu'tey frowned, but knew he could not carry both Ni'win and Kn'indy… cursing to himself, he turned away. "I am sorry ManyNames, I will sing of your sacrifice to my children and my childrens' children." Then he began his climb, Ni'win crying into his back.

Pxay'peyral held back the whole of Pandora from the one he loved, starring into her eyes. He used all the strength he would ever use in his entire lifetime, all at once, and his voice sang all the songs he would ever sing in his lifetime, all at once. It was just enough… just enough to speak a few more words. "My love, please go." he whispered. Kn'indy shook her head, closing her eyes, the pain to great to speak. "My love, my Kn'…" She slowly raised her eyes; he wanted nothing more then to touch her one last time, to feel her touch, but he could feel nothing; only the pressure of untold tons pressing down upon him, trying to break him, and take the love of his life. He held it back, with everything he was and spoke his last words. "My love… Nantang scarred my arms, Toruk scarred my legs, Palulukan scarred my back; the Na'vi scarred my bond, the Sky People my mind, Eywa has scarred my soul, but you… only you can scar my heart." She looked at him, tears unable to fall. "Do not make the last thing I see, your death."

She looked into him with all the love one could ever give another person, without boundaries, without limit. "My love, I will never leave you."

She wept, he was silent; his lips parted, "Then take me."

His eyes looked into her, gold which sparkled without end. Kn'indy understood, taking her braid, taking his… and taking him, _all of him_, into herself. As the ground finally began to sink, as Pxay'peyral's eyes dimmed. Kn'indy stepped away and looked one last time at the one she loved. A curtain of black fell around the still kneeling body, even in death, refusing to bow. Refusing to fall. As she turned to begin the climb to freedom, the ground caved in around the still body of Pxay'peyral. Engulfing all within the mine in total darkness. Time without register passed. Above in the compound the collapse shook AMPs and soldiers off their feet, the work lights toppled. When the three Na'vi broke from the group, unearthed and coated black, none saw them. Two ran, one carrying another. With a defiant screech a group of dragons fell from the sky, one ridden by a blue man who took Ni'win's black body into his arms. The other black body jumped upon the back of another and left two Ikran hissing in confusion. Four Ikran's took flight, two without riders. Up, up into the night sky of Pandora barely touched by the dawn as the sky people compound was wrapped in black clouds making an entire patch of Pandora jungle a black hole upon the land.

…

The Ikran people of the Eastern Sea cried out in joy as the Ikrans landed, but were instantly silenced by the state of their own. Txon'taw carried Ni'win to the healers, Tsu'tey stood like stone, but Kn'indy… Kn'indy moved as if in a daze. The crowed of Na'vi who encircled them to welcome and congratulated them froze in their words when they saw her. Her eyes; there was a serenity there, deeper then any had seen, but the color... a golden so bright, it was not natural. She kneeled to the ground before any could say words and wailed in a mix of grief and ecstasy; a song of madness. The Olo'eytkan, the Tsahik, all the Na'vi people watched in silent pity, confusion, and fear. Kn'indy's voice reached the heavens, blending with the rage of the sea, the sorrow of the Ikran's cry, and the silent mourning of Eywa's endless horizon.

…

Grace and her people would not hear of Pxay'peyral's death, not for a long time. They were pulled from their link beds, furious and faced with threats. Yet Max had long sent the information he received, backed up and already on its way to Earth. It would take a while before it reached the distant star, but reach it it did. Communications flew back and forth, blame, outcry and outrage. A number of the board of directors in the RDA resigned, public opinion burned, new laws were enacted, promises made. None on Pandora would pay however, on either side. Parker claimed only to follow orders, and it was true, he made sure the Avatars were returned unharmed. Refused to press charges even when presured and awaited the verdict from earth. He had gone to Grace himself, even before it was clear nothing would touch him, and still apologized for the deception. He was forced to hold secrets, explaining things never meant to get so far out of hand. Grace wanted nothing to do with him, until he revealed he had personally closed down the whole operation… and that he held the still comatose human body of Pxay'peyral.

He had salvaged it, personally, at his own expense in the vain hope his mind was still alive and could someday be returned. He never wished for any harm to come to any of _his_ people. Because there would be no further punishment from Earth, because nothing more would be done, and because if she wished to continue her work she would have to work with him, Grace laid down some demands. She recieved more funding and freedom from Parker to call it all square and she took charge of Pxay'peyral's human body though she learned many days later, when she could not contact him, of his death and Kn'indy's disappearance; learned his body would never be used again. She mourned him then, again. Yet put his human body away into cryo-storage, holding a small hope -just a small one- there was the possibility. It was held as a type of funeral ceremony, and Selfridge attended. As did Quaritch.

He was found a day after the collapse, having survived by crawling inch by inch through the air vents. He was ruled blameless for following orders and untouchable since he too had been caught in the blast. He and Grace would never stand easy around each other ever again, but he didn't press her, nor make any threats… he remained oddly colder and distant from all. Except his men. From then on he wouldn't give any of them a second chance, if they doubted him, if they disobeyed him, they were shipped home without question. He never reached out to anyone ever again. That is… until one year later. When the ship from earth finally arrived from its six year journey, and another cripple showed up at his safety brief. This man was broken, shattered in body like... he… was shattered in mind. But this one was a Marine. A soldier. He followed orders, and he got the job done. Quaritch would not reach out to him with very much, but, reach he did none the less. His reasons hidden, even from himself.

When the crippled soldier arrived on Pandora there was an uneasy truce between the powers that be. The man he answered to and the woman he answered to never really spoke to each other, and Selfridge stood between them every chance he got. There was a confrontation between the two of them, about him, but Selfridge could do nothing more than follow orders; new orders from home. His frustration and helplessness became clear during the confrontation. "Isn't that the whole point of your little puppet show? You walk like them, you talk like them. We build them a school, teach them English, but after -how many years- the relations with the indigenous are only getting worse."

"Yeah, well that tends to happen when you use machine guns on them." Grace replied, trying to read him, trying to figure out why he was suddenly so ridgid. When he showed her the same paper weight and laid out an ultimatum, she knew he was only repeating words he had been told from the larger monster that was the RDA.

"So use what you've got, and get me some results." he parroted, and there was nothing more he nor Grace could do, for though Grace had stopped a small part of the RDA overrunning Pandora… she could do nothing about the increase in mercenaries and decrease in military. Nothing would be done about that for several years… and by then it could be too late, so Grace accepted her new driver though she did not fully trust him; at least he was a marine. The cripple arrived in the middle of a power struggle that had been resting uneasy for an entire year, lessened by time, but not by memory- by the humans or the Na'vi. They made their lands forbidden to all sky people. They openly attacked the Sky people now, their machines and soldiers. No dreamwalkers could come near… except for Grace. She and she alone was respected for some reason the Na'vi would not tell. She alone was watched out for. So when she, as an Avatar, led two unfamiliar Dreamwalkers into the forest, when Palulukan chose to hunt one they did not know, the Omaticaya did nothing because Grace was not endangered.

When he escaped, one Omaticaya went to follow. She had heard the tale Tsu'tey, her betrothed, told her. The betrayal of the sky people, their abandonment, their cruelty… but she had also heard the tale of one sky person, just one, who was not to be hated. An extraordinary spirit whose will earned him great honor with many names. One who gave everything for a Na'vi girl who wronged him. She had heard of these tales, thinking them a sign from Eywa. So as she stood above the dreamwalker, as she raised her bow in hatred for their remembered cruelty and cowardice… only Eywa whispering to her stayed her hand. She followed again, and found this Dreamwalker just as lost and foolish as all sky people… but his heart… he was without fear. Again she was reminded of the tale. Reminded that one, at least one, among them was not like all of them and she wondered. When the time came shae saved him, he asked to learn, but she knew: "Sky people do not learn, you do not see." but she spared and would have left him if Eywa had not then sang to her.

Her mind was filled with confusion, doubts, curiosity, but she could not forget her anger at the tales she heard. When Tsu'tey came upon them, he saw only another demon, only another betrayer… but Eywa had sent a sign, so he too became curious. When he revealed he was a sky person warrior, Tsu'tey wanted nothing more then to kill him, but Eytukan and then Mo'at had stilled him. He said he had come to learn but as they knew from the Ikran people of the Eastern Sea, "It is hard to fill a cup that is already full." Still, they considered it, for they too had heard the tale of the one, just one, who when given a Na'vi body had done great things for both peoples… and lost everything for it. For this, they gave this new sky person -all sky people- a chance, _just one chance_, to prove themselves. Because they could not trust Tsu'tey to still his hand from slaying the Dreamwalker, they gave him into the hands of their second most trusted child. She was not pleased, for her heart was still confused by the tales and the signs, but she had no choice.

With memories of _him_ on her lips Mo'at, Tsahik of the Omaticaya, spoke: "And we shall see if your 'insanity' can be cured." So it was, the crippled soldier woke to the fearful eyes of a scientist, a scientist who had scorned him that morning, yet looked at him now as if afraid -so afraid to loose another one- and he told her the good news. She marveled to herself, remembered well the joy he had shown in his new body, a childish joyous smile she had not seen since… _him_. So she too gave him, the person, a real chance. Thus it was in all ways, two beings from totally separate peoples, two totally separate life times, were brought together and given a chance -_just one chance_- by all the peoples on Pandora. For the memory of a lost fool who so long ago did amazing things to show both peoples there _could_ be a future for them all, two people were allowed to learn from one another. Their names were Jake and Neytiri, and this, is where their story truly begins.


	16. Chapter 16:The Blue Meanie

**Chapter XVI: The Blue Meanie**

They were all around him now, the dogs dressed up like something out of a science fiction B-movie complete with horns, taped on dragon wings and silver mesh sweaters trying to resembled scales. They laughed at him, him and his giant plastic milk-bone squeaky-toy held like a spear. He spat at them in defiance, ears pulled back, fangs bared and tail lashing. "I haven't got all damn night!" Squeakah, squeakah, squeakah! Jake awoke early, his body humming from a new kind of exhaustion he had never experienced even during his many years as a marine. It felt like someone had taken out his brain and forced it to rucksack fifty miles uphill on little stem legs like you use to see in old cartoons. He had never actually had mental fatigue so great it literally made the rest of his body feel like a used rag. Of course, this was only his second night as an Avatar driver and, what a hell of a night! He actually thought he would have had more nightmares about viperwolves circling him, that kind of stuff was medieval, like, primal fear crap. But he didn't.

Instead his sleep was punctuated by the lithe form of a leaping Na'vi coming to his rescue. Man. Talk about science fiction. Click your heels Dorothy, Toto has six legs and the midgets are twelve feet tall. He'd never expected to even be where he was, honestly. One tragedy after another seemed to mark the events of his life like notches on a stick fate was beating him soundly with. Tommy, his departed brother, got the worst of it though… using his borrowed body still didn't sit well with him, but the use of legs made it hard not to enjoy. There should have been some guilt; being paid to fill Tommy's shoes like- _ha, fill his shoes, another cripple joke. Well done Sully._ Groggy without physical pain, Jake Sully lifted himself from his bed to go to his other bed, his Link Bed. Fine job this was, bounce from bed to bed, make good relations with the natives… it's almost like Grace was pim- Before the thought could form, as if on cue, the aforementioned red headed scientist stalked around the corner. She didn't have her usual cigarette, or her usual tight expression of resignation and annoyance at that resignation.

"Pop quiz new fish." she said with a quirk at the edge of her mouth.

"It's 'new meat', new fish is for prison." Jake cocked a smile.

Grace looked grandly impressed by his knowledge, "Ohhh, so fish isn't meat huh? Guess it doesn't count unless it's red and sticks in your colon huh?" She looked at him like it was a serious question, and for just a second he didn't know if he should answer or not.

Thankfully, his sort-of-friend Norm answered before he had too. "Pink Salmon doesn't count, by the way." He joined the joke. Grace didn't look at him but shared her smile with Jake. Norm was Jake's sort-of-friend because he was a little busy sulking, or rather, steaming with jealousy at the moment. Something not lost on everybody on the base since Norm was lousy at hiding it, jumping in anywhere he could with his massive stockpile of Pandora trivia. Jake had no doubt that if the Na'vi held a game show tomorrow, Norm would beat him to the buzzer every time. Still, competition was not something a marine took lightly.

"Any meats' red with enough blood on it." He cocked his head giving them his best dirty grin, the kind that spoke of trenches and battlefields, the only pop quizzes there were avoiding the pop of bullets.

Norm turned a shade greener, Grace didn't even miss a beat. "Well you're going be the reddest new meat out there if you don't get these names right." She held out the pad again, showing the face of that chief running-knife-through-your-gut or whatever his name was.

"Tucan?" Jake tried.

Norm let out a barely covered snicker, Grace slapped the pad on her thigh. "Look grunt, I mean it, if you don't get this, they could get you." She said tersely, with a hint of something else. Almost like worry; Oh. So she wasn't just having it on with Norm at his expense? She was really worried? Jake was a bit surprised at this; he had thought Grace would be just as cold and POed at him the next day once she got over the whole getting lost at night thing, but she seemed genuinely concerned for him. Even though he couldn't die, just his Avatar would… did she really care? Jake waved it off. Naw, she couldn't, she just wanted to use him to get back in with the Omaticaya, that was it. Why would she care about some cripple with no science background?

"Okay let me see the pad again." Still, if they tried, he would too. Cooperation was all a part of being a Marine.

They drilled through a list of names on their way to breakfast. Sitting around the table Grace actually spoke highly of him. "-this angry Thanator after him." She said, everyone laughed.

Jake spooned whatever it was, it's best not to think about it, into his mouth. "It's not something you can teach." He laughed back. Grace gave him a heartfelt compliment again, with that same kind of weird nostalgic look. He didn't understand where it came from, or why she only looked at him like that. Norm seemed to see it too, his body posture and barely hidden pout were clear on that. Jake would need his help before this whole ordeal was over though, and he hoped he'd come back around. He liked the guy, though he didn't show it right away. It was reassuring to have someone just as nervous, excited, and out of place on this "new world". The fact Norm was more awkward then him gave Jake even more confidence, but he didn't want any of that to push him away. Friends were hard to get in the marines, especially in a mobile meat wagon. He had dealt with the jar head taunts and callous black humor, but he never thought of himself as half the man anybody was, even if he was only eye level with half of everybody's body. Norm had been the first person he met coming here though and he had instantly tried to latch on in a friendly, country, kind of way.

Jake appreciated it; just like he appreciated the non-committal non-judgmental attitude of the pilot he had recently met, the one who flew all the science sorties. He didn't mind being half her height so much. Really, he could use all the help he could get. A thought that didn't set easy with him as he sat there surrounded by people, chatting with him about his recent "try not to get eaten and call it an adventure" thing. He told himself he could pass any test a man could pass, but he knew that didn't always have to mean alone. It took six years to get out here, having fast friends to pass the non-dangerous parts of the day was chicken soup for the brain. A brain which was slowly feeling less and less numb as he engaged in the kind of small talk he rarely got to experience. There wasn't talk of the constant threat of death or how many kills somebody had, or grim humor. The people around him were more concerned with life. Yeah they were cold and objective scientists, but that didn't mean they couldn't enjoy their work.

It was strange to see so many people with the same fiery passion for the same thing gathered in one place; but then again, if you were giving up six years of your life, there had to be some pretty strong fire in there somewhere. He found their enthusiasm infectious, even if he couldn't understand what they were talking about half the time. Like all learned people, they were eager to show the depth of their knowledge and in that way, inform or teach others about what they knew, had learned, and suspected. It was like being surrounded by a class full of people wanting to help you with your homework. A far cry from the 'you might die tomorrow so why should I get to know you?' attitudes prevalent in most of the Marine and merc dives. Jake was also surprised to learn some of the scientist had a few scrapes like himself. Near misses with things called 'Slingers', 'Stingbats' and 'Dinicthoids' or something; things like giant piranha with human faces. Jake would have to remember that before going swimming. Things became rushed after that; Grace was showing him the pad again, as they moved quickly to the Avatar chambers. Jake had gotten all of them right, aside from pronunciation, when he got settled in. There were a few more good natured jabs, but finally he was laying down in the darkness before he 'tasted the rainbow'.

…

After the magic carpet ride Jake found himself hovering hundreds of feet in the air, held up by a thin net of green. A living hammock; just like everything else the Na'vi used, their beds were deeply engrained with nature. What got Jake was why the hammock glowed when he touched it with his fingers but not with his body? Ah, leave it for the science types, his job was to make sure he didn't get killed by- there she was. His eyes adjusted to the soft blue skin and fierce golden eyes. Her ears were pushed forward, her tail hitched slightly to the side. She must have been awake well before him because she was crouched over his head with a sour look openly on her exotically beautiful face. Jake couldn't help but let his eyes wander up the in-his-face curves, especially as her necklace hung off her body from the pull of slight gravity. There was a moment of stark admiration before it was ruined by her stern rebuke. "I wait." She accused him. She was pretty no doubt about it, in an elegant blue swan kind of way, but the slight muscles she had from naturally living in this death trap of a world with ease reminded Jake she was pound for pound tougher and deadlier then he was right now.

Jake offered his most winning smile. "Thank you."

The response confused her, but only a touch of it showed. "Come." She said simply, without room for question. She was already moving off after she said it. Jake scrambled from his bed, no easy task when you're trying not to flip yourself to your death, and quickly went after her. She paused by the usual communal eating circle where Jake was happy, and relieved, to see some other Na'vi were eating too. So even they had late risers eh?

"Morning." He said nonchalantly taking a bowl.

"No bowl, leave night guards, eat and run." Neytiri said firmly. Jake felt the slight relief empty right out of him; so he was just catching up with the night shift. Nice.

"Who taught you that expression?" He asked experimentally, stuffing the dried meat and slices of fruit into his cheeks.

"Not expression, you run." She answered. Jake swallowed his sigh, and his breakfast, with a 'bring it on' grin as she took off. He was hard pressed to catch up. They flowed through the trees, or at least, she did. He did his best not to go head first into the dirt a few hundred feet below. There was a lot of near misses where he had to go on all fours to keep from pitching over the side, none of which she bothered to help him with. Hell, he was probably lucky she waited for him to even stand. It was breath sapping work and they were only moving from one place to another. Still. Jake found a few slices of time to marvel at the sheer amount of greenery around him. His jumps, and grunts of effort, punctuated now and again by little 'whoa's when he paused over a great drop. There were leaves here, actual leaves, bigger then the floor of some of the apartments he'd lived in. He'd hate to rake this lawn.

He saw a larger variety of trees, plants, pods, flowers, leaves, vines, and grass then he'd ever seen in his entire life and this was just while trying to keep up with the lighter then air, 'look at me I'm dancing away from you while you stub your toe' native princess. She seemed to be enjoying his discomfort. Scratch that, he knew she was enjoying it, but he didn't let it show on his face. The easy grin was all she got each time she would check to see if he had had enough. Her quickly hidden disappointment at his refusal to ask her to slow down or wait was all that kept him leaping from one branch to another like some giant blue Tarzan… Jake off handedly wondered if he'd spot any blue Bananas… They arrived much later at a flat river bed with a shallow stream. Jake was thoroughly winded by this time but his perseverance must have reached the Na'vi princess because she didn't hassle him while he doubled over. Once Jake had gotten his breath, he looked around himself. Like everywhere else on Pandora, it was beautiful here. A landscape Bob Ross could barely top. Jake took in the slow moving water, the large cup like flowers and wildlife. There were a few Pa'li grazing, or, doing weird freaky gigantic hummingbird like things with their tongues. Jake suppressed a shiver.

Neytiri instantly warmed up once she got near the animals though, or perhaps it was Jake being so comically out of breathe that made her crack a smile. Either way, she was a little less abrasive when she began speaking about the animals. Jake listened intently, and when it came time, heaved himself up on the back of the huge animal. It was a new experience being on top of a horse as large as an elephant, but then again, he was just as big; with a trunk on the back of his head. Well, okay not a trunk, Jake reasoned with himself, some kind of mystic wormy firewire or something. He repressed another shiver as he jacked into the animal; there was a swarm of emotions, feelings, distant thoughts like listening in on a phone conversation but only hearing one side. She told him to start speaking back however, so he tried to firmly send his thoughts across the line as he spoke a command. Talk about reaching out and touching someone.

He must have said too much because the animal took off a little faster then he intended and as he found his body free floating in the air. Two thoughts with two very different emotions surged through him; the first was fear… other people had lost full use of their body to paralysis from falling off a horse. The second was laughter as he remembered an old bronco buster rodeo tradition and quickly tried to complete a sentence before he hit the ground: _Justtakingthepi_- he managed before the fall slammed his shoulder into the mud and rolled him thoroughly. He lay for a while as the conflicting emotions warred, but as he could still move, the last quickly won out. He also remembered Quaritch saying something about the Na'vi being extremely hard to kill. Maybe it wasn't so easy to jar a spine laced with carbon fiber? Unfortunately these thoughts were squashed as across from him he caught sight of Tsu'tey and his band of merry men riding across the plain.

A few choice words echoed in his head, unspoken, but gave him the humor needed to stand and face the hostile native. He spoke in English, surprising Jake, but his words and tone weren't as surprising. "Naw, you'd miss me." Jake heard himself say, "I knew you could speak English. I knew it." He pointed, the disarming smile of someone who had taken all the hard knocks in his life and rolled with them flying to his lips. Almost incredulously, Tsu'tey smiled back. In disbelief, wonder, or perhaps he was imagining what he'd like to do to the impudent sky person. Either way, he spoke to Neytiri next, and she smiled lightly at whatever he had said. Then she sent them off and turned back to Jake, smothering the impressed chagrin she held for him at his handling of the much larger party of overtly hostile people.

"Again."

…

As Tsu'tey rode away, his fellows hooting like a verbal victory had been won. Tsu'tey found the grin on his face and let it drop. He hadn't meant to let it show, but the Dreamwalker's refusal to be offended –and being covered in mud- had sparked a memory of some of the foolish things another Dreamwalker had said and done covered in dirt; a Dreamwalker who acted completely opposite of what one expected and who had treated obvious enemies with a fool hardy compassion. He could not help but wonder now if this Dreamwalker demon would turn out to be like that one. He found in himself a resolve then, to give this "warrior" of the sky people a chance to prove to him he wasn't like all the others. He would allow the Dreamwalker to show him he was worthy of the chance he was given; he would test the Dreamwalker, and even allow him to make mistakes, but he wouldn't trust him. He didn't think he could ever trust a Dreamwalker again, after all, none of them could be as amazing as that one had been. It wasn't possible, he'd have to, to, become Toruk Mako or something. Tsu'tey erupted with an uproar of laugher at his clever thought. Toruk Mako, a Dreamwalker? ah Tsu'tey, you have not lost your humor.


	17. Chapter 17: The Man Babies

**Chapter XVII: The Man Babies**

He was… strange …to her, but she had only known the Dreamwalker Grace on any real personal level so perhaps all the male Dreamwalkers were like this one? Neytiri curled her tail, tucking the long braids of her hair behind her ears and setting them to keep the waves of raven locks out of her face. She could not imagine an entire people like this, Jake-soo-lee, unless there were no predators on this world of theirs she did not see how any of them survived their first year- well… there was a thought. Did the sky people have babies? She had never seen any of their children… Neytiri's tail stuck straight out and her ears flew forward openly; perhaps Jake _really_ _was_ a baby! Neytiri was rocked to the very foundation of her soul, feeling unbelievably guilty for her treatment of him earlier. Had she been making such terrible sport of a mere child? She had no real maturity concept of the peoples from the sky. Sure she had learned much from Grace's school but they did not cover some of the things all parents usual did with their children.

Reproduction, love, social dynamics, these were not things heavily probed in the small school. The lessons were usually on English and the differences of the worlds. Neytiri had remembered one in the class asking where sky babies came from and Grace had grown suddenly odd. It was a weird look of wide eyes and turning of the head, discomfort, disbelief, Neytiri did not know. But then Grace spoke of 'mythological tangent' of 'storks' and 'cigars' and 'godpleasegetmeoutofhere' but Neytiri still did not know what most of those words meant. She would need to broach the subject with Jakesully carefully. Or perhaps. Neytiri tried to recall back, was there not another sky person Dreamwalker with Grace? Yes! He was a male. He didn't act anything like Jakesully; who had a way of walking which was ready for anything, expecting danger around every corner and with a face of clear awareness, at least, when it wasn't split by a warm and giving smile. The other Dreamwalker was much more casual, very relaxed. She had liked him, he was silly.

He would play many games with the children of the Omaticaya, of which Neytiri was one, back then. He showed them, 'hide and seek' which the children knew but did not know about this 'counting' or 'headstart' and he taught them the English name for another game they already played called 'tag'. The game they did not know and never really understood however, was 'baseball'. He gave them small soft round objects, and stuck strangely shaped sticks in their hands, and then told them to hit the 'ball' with the 'Bat'. When all the children repeatedly started whacking the balls into a pulp while standing over them in a circle, he doubled over laughing. He laughed hard, shouting "out out, safe safe!" repeatedly, and "You're out of here! The ref is blind!" or "SwwwwING battah battah", much to the growing laughter of the children. He had a musical way of speaking things she had not heard from Grace or the other Dreamwalkers. She had missed him after the school closed.

That terrible time; they had returned to tell the people fully of the sky people machines doing terrible things, while at the exact same time, one precious to her had returned from trying to stop one of those machines. What came next took both he and her, from Neytiri; she hated the sky people after that. When Tsu'tey came back to them with the tale of his end she had one more reason to hate the sky people, but she had made a new friend at least. Neytiri found herself in a sudden gloom at the direction of her memories, then perked her ears. Why should she not go visit? She had not been there in a while, perhaps she could even take Jakesully with her, he may learn something. Neytiri turned her head as he finally made it to the top of the tree where she had been waiting for him. She looked at him closely, wondering again about his maturity as she allowed him to again catch his breath. Jake puffed his cheeks out, brushing his legs. It took less time now, but she still had to slow for him many times. Her good mood at her bright idea had not diminished.

"Come." She said to him. Jake nodded, preparing himself. Neytiri stood and began her run across the tree limbs, Jake followed in the same halting way he always had, but still without complaint or whining. Without even checking her step Neytiri dove into thin air; automatically her body reached, turned and twisted for the great leaves which slowed her fall, she landed easily on her feet and turned to wait. Perhaps he was not such a child if... Jake's shouts, the sound of his falling body, and his bow bouncing a few feet from her ripped her from her pondering. She stepped back as his body followed suit. He stood up, breathing heavily, and stooped to pick up his bow with a grin of accomplishment …then again. They took off running soon after with Jake following as best as he could; Neytiri smirked, he moved swiftly, on the ground at least. They gave a wandering Vipewolf pack a wide berth and made good time.

…

The sun was still high above when they reached the secluded spot where Neytiri knew she would find her kind, if not distant, friend. Jake looked around himself waiting calmly for whatever lesson she would spring upon him. "We go to meet a good friend, one who is Omaticaya but not Omaticaya." Neytiri gave him a stern look as he gave her a questioning face. "She has been through much, the Omaticaya honor her by giving her a home when her own people sent her away."

"Her people just sent her away?" Jake raises his eyebrows.

Neytiri pointed at him strongly, "Do not mention!"

He raised his hands defensively, stopping in mid-step, "Understood." he said flinching as if she'd strike him. Again. Neytiri turned, hiding her smile and calling out with a series of short hoots. She knew her friend would be hiding, secluded out here by herself like she usually did with her free time. Neytiri waited a moment as Jake stirred restlessly, she frowned, her friend may not appear if…

"Neytiriiiii!" A chipper voice sang out.

Jake shifted from foot to foot as a young Na'vi girl, about as tall as Neytiri with a heart shaped face and very well developed muscles dropped from the tree in front of them. She moved forward with a smile as bright as the sun. The first thing Jake noticed after these features were the small horizontal scars along her thighs and belly, she also had a white circle on her left arm; a bullet wound. But more striking then all of these were her eyes, they were not as light and innocent as most Na'vi. They were hard, tight around the edges, but the pupils were almost luminous… it had to be a trick of the light, or something, maybe a result of the dark circles under her eyes, like someone with insomnia; someone who had terrible terrible nightmares. She and Neytiri embraced, hugging each other tightly before Neytiri finally turned to Jake. "Jakesully, this is my heart friend, Peyral."

Jake nodded to her with a slight smile, still wondering at her appearance. Jake had seen eyes like that in the service a lot. She had seen things, thing she didn't like to face when she slept. "Hey how you doing?" He gave her a warm smile, doing his best to impress. She didn't return it; her eyes pierced Jake, reading deeply into him, like the eyes of Eytukan had. She had seen a lot with those eyes, that was for sure.

"Is this the Dreamwalker you always speak of?" She smiled at Jake finally, mischievously, a warmth flowing from her.

Neytiri leaned into her, giving Jake an appraising look. "Yes, as I have said. He is not much." She switched the conversation to Na'vi making Jake shift nervously as he lost track of what they were saying, but knew they were clearly talking about him.

"He is cute, like baby." Peyral touched Neytiri's arm.

Neytiri looked at her with open mouthed smile of shock before throwing her head back in a howl of laughter. "You would not say such things if you had to watch him bumble around like a blind Angtsìk." Neytiri remarked.

Peyral shared the smile, never taking her eyes off him, "It must be nice to have one such a he hang off your every word, follow your every command; like an Ikranay chick." Peyral grinned like a viperwolf at him, Neytiri turned a skeptical eye to Jake. He squirmed under their combined scrutiny and they fell into each other giggling. Jake had never seen Neytiri act so… girly. Her friend must have been very sweet to bring out this side of her. Jake found himself smiling sheepishly at their antics.

"So…" he said, shrugging with one shoulder, trying to remain casual without preening himself subconsciously in front of them. They laughed at this too.

Neytiri grabbed her suddenly, "Ah! Peyral, you must help me, do you know about sky people maturity?"

Neytiri looked at her expectantly, Peyral cocked her eyebrow, "Do you mean age? Or…?" she chanced, tilting her head to the side.

"Babies." Neytiri said deadpanned. "I do not know if the sky people have babies, and if this Jakesully is one." She said straight as a board. Jake caught his name and then Peyral fixed them both with such an open mouthed smile of pure mirth Jake found himself grinning at the joke he knew nothing about, despite himself. When her tinkling laughter erupted and she had to crouch to her heels, Neytiri looked at him and then her friend uncertainly, trying to keep her face firm- but Peyral kept laughing, large heaving sobs of laughter which Neytiri was not immune too, soon she too had to laugh, hiding her face as her giggle fluttered between her fingers. Jake found himself looking from one to the other completely baffled, but the smile on his face grew wider and wider until he couldn't hold back his own laughter. The three continued to laugh, stop-and-start-again, egged on by the infectious laughter of Peyral, their laughter filled the small clearing by a tiny stream with great trees open to the sky.

They calmed themselves much later and Peyral spoke a few more words in Na'vi, Neytiri gave Jake such an awful glare then, but nothing happened. Peyral suggested something and soon the three went off hunting. Jake stayed behind Neytiri most of the time, with her pointing out all the signs, but every now and again his gaze would flicker to the other Na'vi. This, Peyral. Her movements were Na'vi, just as skilled, swift and silent as Neytiri but there was something different about the way she carried herself. Where Neytiri seemed to be almost dancing along the ground, and through the trees, Peyral prowled. She was a hunter through and through and Jake felt a small thrill of discomfort at the prospect of trying to defend against one so driven. If all the Na'vi hunters were like this… Jake finally understood why there was only one Sampson assigned to science missions instead of multiple teams. Grace had some kind of pull with the natives, the teams were safe with her, probably because of the school and her well known love of the Na'vi children.

Jake had a flash of awe as he realized Grace had protected him far better then he ever could have her on that first day. Jake swallowed the surprise, bringing his attention back in front, Peyral was motioning him forward. Neytiri gave him her, 'be silent and don't embarrass me in front of my friend or I shall beat you about the face and neck' look and Jake put his full focus on the approach. He took deliberate care with his feet, toes gripping, and heels high. Peyral was frozen like a gargoyle, bow and arrow at her fingertips. Jake noted the wood looked different from Neytiri's bow but his eyes were soon drawn to the clearing before them. A Yerik, or Hexapede, stood grazing completely unaware of their presence. Peyral didn't speak a word nor remove her eyes from her target as she soundlessly lifted her bow. Jake noted her posture, grip, and the way she held her breath. What happened next however surprised Jake to no end and would leave him wondering long after. Peyral let out a slow hiss of air, breathing out audibly… like a sniper.

The release of her arrow was lost in that 'sigh for the fallen', so called by a few in the service, because they said it 'sent death with the bullet' to their target. It was a coping mechanism for career killers who moved beyond the 'all you should feel is recoil' into a deeper spiritual outlook on their far victims. The Yerik raised its head, flinching at the 'breeze' but it didn't even look in their direction. The arrow hit it exactly. Peyral was up and moving before Jake could look at her again, having ripped his gaze from her to see the hit. Neytri was up beside him, smiling at her friend's skill and looking at Jake with the 'you should learn this before I beat you about the face and neck' look. Jake followed quickly, kneeling beside the animal as Peyral prayed. She didn't need to use her dagger, the animal was easily long dead from the strangely too precise shot, but she did it anyway. Jake looked to her again, wondering if he had seen and heard what he had… when she looked up at him, his eyes widened.

For a second, just a split second, and this had to be crazy talk, Jake could have sworn he saw someone else looking back at him. Jake narrowed his eyes, Peyral didn't look away. The surprise was gone, fleeting, as she stared into him. It was like looking at the reflection of a mirror in a calm pool of water, a kind of vast presence that wa- the sound thump on the side of his head brought him back to the situation as Neytiri scowled at him. Only then did Jake realize Peyral was offering him her dagger to let him clean the animal for moving, an intimate honor. Jake breathed some quick apologies as he accepted her personal dagger and began the work, but still he couldn't let the feeling go. Looking back into her eyes though… he saw nothing of what he first felt and began to doubt it was ever there. Perhaps it was just the thrill of the kill which lit up her eyes in a ghostly golden light, starring back at him like a far fire in the abyss.

…

Well after the eerie encounter, Jake earned his own Yerik, and then became ready for his own Ikran. Neytiri stood with him as he looked at the greatest obstacle to becoming an Omaticaya. He was afraid, she could tell, watching his tail move with agitation and his ears twitch; she followed close behind him, her hand on the dagger at her waist. Tsu'tey was with them, he always seemed to be pushing the Dreamwalker, testing him at every opportunity… but he wasn't as harsh as Neytiri had expected him to be when Jake was found lacking. Instead he laughed and let him try again, enjoying his failure instead of hating him for his uselessness. Neytiri didn't know how much of that was because he knew she was his teacher and therefore his failings where hers or if he was giving him room because of something else. His lips were always tight when speaking about the sky people and the Dreamwalkers, but when speaking about Jake he only mocked his inevitable failure.

Because of this, Neytiri found herself hoping for his success more then she would have before she was his teacher, before she was tickled by Peyral's insistence of his good qualities. She watched as he struggled, and found herself calling out to him in fear when he nearly failed… and something else… she found her heart calling out when he succeeded and flew with him on his first flight. They soared together, high over Pandora. Neytiri wondered at her friends' words about him, seeing him with new eyes. Peyral approved of him, held no hate despite what she had been through. Neytiri felt a little silly holding a grudge against one who had nothing to do with the tragedy, and in truth, she had long ago begun to see the things Peyral had seen… long ago allowed Jake in all his foolish bumbling, to stumble into a small part of her closed heart. From then on that small part only grew greater and greater as time went on.

She smiled more when he reveled, gave him more room to make mistakes and shared fully in his successes. Slowly, inch by inch, her heart warmed to him. They shared life, death, and everything that was their worlds. He learned about her, she learned about him, and slowly this learning turned into yearning- yearning into enjoying, and enjoying into loving. Long, yet not long, after Neytiri lost so much, she found something else to fill the void. She was scared of it, ashamed, intrigued, and she absolutely could not do without it. Soon after, he became one of the people. He passed all the tests, proved Tsu'tey wrong, and showed them it could be done. Showed them the chance was not for nothing. Jakesully proved himself to all of the Na'vi and they rested their hands upon him, as one, welcoming him into their world fully and without reservation. She called him away after the ceremony; laughing the two Na'vi danced among the night lights of Pandora, they stood together beneath the weeping strands of pink light, Neytiri holding them softly.

"You are Omaticaya now. You may make your bow from the wood of Hometree. And you may choose a woman. We have many fine women. Ninat is the best singer." She said behind her, her voice hiding within her chest, her face turned away. The beat of her heart whispered to her like the voices of the past had, whispers of what she hoped was to come.

"I don't want Ninat." He said. She looked to him, a smile, a question deep within.

"Peyral is a good hunter." She turned away again, shyly. Testing.

"Yes, she is a good hunter." He said honestly; she turned quickly, a slight fear there, the question burning even greater as she searched his eyes. They only looked back into her own. "I've already chosen. But this woman must also choose me."

She smiled then, unbelievingly, a laugh, then with a softness. "She already has." The flow of events, great and small, pinion around the two forms interlocked beneath the frozen rain of Eywa's fingertips. For a time, just a small time, nothing mattered to them beyond each other. Nothing bothered, nor stirred them. No predators, no machines, no destiny, no fate. For one night they were as one, with each other, with the world, with the universe... but the dawn must always come.

…

He stared at the screen, the blue face. He knew that face and he felt a revulsion flow over him. He reached out, again, despite what every fiber of his body had told him. He had given the crippled marine a chance because he was a man of discipline, of law, and a protector of humanity. He had given up his legs for the cause and he had given him full and faithful service. But… not long ago he sat with him, and even when he told him the reward of his legs was a done deal, told him the mission was over, told him he could get out and end this charade with the savages- he received words which slapped that hand of friendship and trust away. Now, looking at that blue face, he felt the cold knife in his back and only cold fury remained. Quaritch had tried, had trusted, but now that was all gone.

He should have known. He should have expected it. The chance earned by that lost scarred fool, scarred like he was on his first day, it was _all_ gone now. The Na'vi were not worth that kind of dedication, not worth the honor that man had given everything for. They were evil, ignorant monsters, twisting the good hearts of his people; turning them against their own race. He would never forgive them for the loss of his men. He would never forgive them. There was a line Quaritch wouldn't cross, a line drawn by that man in that cold black dirt so long ago. A boundary he allowed himself to wait behind until _they_ crossed it, _not him_, and they finally had. _He_ finally had, Jake sully, had crossed that line.


	18. Chapter 18: The Storm Gathers

**Chapter XVIII: The Storm Gathers**

The world floats in an abyss of stars. Great and small occurrences happen each second, each moment, more profound then those experiencing them can ever realize. Choices, so easy in the making, have consequences far beyond the scope of tomorrow. "You mated with this woman?" Tsu'tey could not hold back the sorrow and rage; his voice was pained, his trust, the small budding trust he had allowed to worm inside his mind because he had seen the Dreamwalker accomplish great things -no matter how hard he tested him- all of it gone in an instant, blown away on the wind. They were demons, all of them. _All of them_. Raw emotion and harsh words flew from the lips of many peoples, in many places.

"I'm not talking about pagan voodoo here, I'm talking about something real and measurable in the biology of the forest!" Grace pleaded to the unbelieving eyes, angry eyes; her reaching hands, her reasoning hands, scorned and pushed away. "That's more connections than the human brain. You get it? It's a network – a global network. And the Na'vi can access it, they can upload and download data, memories, at sites like the one you destroyed." There is no more room for her here, not even for Selfridge; not anymore. Quaritch had done his work well under the direction of the RDA, he had an army now, without qualms, without questions; the steam roller was well underway. But alone, Selfridge could still be reached; he heard their pleas, the reaching hands. He looked to them both, wedged between the rock and the devil but still he heard, because his heart wasn't cold.

"You've got one hour. Unless you want your girlfriend in there when the axe comes down, you get them to evacuate. One hour." But it was to no avail. With the mistake of ignorance, ignorance to the depth of the power struggle around him, the crippled man felt the words like stones in his heart. He spoke them, and they killed her. Words of the tale, rushing, remembered, conflicted, rage pulled them forward:

"You not Na'vi," a hiss of breath, a scream. "YOU WILL NEVER BE ONE OF THE PEOPLE!" The chance, the one chance, earned by blood and past… lost. They were on there own once more, no longer held by binds of past honor or deeds. Everything was even. Skyward, the dead men arrived. They were not evil in their numb existence, they simply did as they were told, pay check to pay check. Their greedy eyes were dead, dead to fend off hunger and drown their conscience in the thrill of enacting the kill or be killed world which had been all they knew for so long. It was not that they did not care, it was not that something couldn't reach their hearts eventually, it was that they could not care… because to care meant to die. They were given no chance to care, no time for their hearts to open to the whispers of the world. So, deaf and dead, they held their hands over death for others.

Still. There was one who cold not forget so easily. Mo'at, Tsahik of the Omaticaya, one of the few who knew the true name of the girl Neytiri had taken as heart friend. Her true story. Mo'at marched forward, her eyes hard and pained, blade in hand. Could she let the chance earned be forgotten- the whisper of hope swallowed in the screams of rage? She brought the blade up. A flash; a crouching figure still unbowed, silent now, miles below in Eywa's black arms. A young face, heart shaped, with eyes so pained yet a smile so kind. …"If you are one of us… help us." The bonds were cut, hope allowed, and the last debt owed paid in full. So it was the dead eyes with dead hands pushed the unfeeling buttons and a great tree, like the chance earned beneath the world, fell. They were on their own. All was flame and despair, the mourning cries, the screams of outrage and loss, the haze of unreality… _I was a warrior who dreamed he could bring peace. Sooner or later though, you always have to wake up. _A silent room; a dead end.

Then, unexpectedly, they were free. Freed by the hands which were not dead, by the eyes and heart which had been given time to see. Trudy Chacon aided by Max Patel, spirited them away with a plan. Silently, likes thieves in the night, the small group made a daring escape. But not without cost. "This is going to ruin my whole day." Grace said weakly, feeling everything drain from her center, that red yet cold flower blooming across her belly. Jake did all he could but he knew he would have to do more. For Grace, for himself, for everyone; he made the mistake and only he could do something about it. And _he would_ do something about it. Yet he was alone now, the chance lost like the drifting ash which pooled around his feet; he was in the place where the eye does not see. But. There was one whose eyes always saw him, one who sent his Ikran to carry him for the most dangerous task he would yet face. _And face it he did_.

Jakesully, Toruk Makto, landed before the Omaticaya. Before the waiting eyes of Neytiri, the disbelieving eyes of Tsu'tey and the knowing eyes of Mo'at. Jakesully, the rider of last shadow, who was accepted by Neytiri without fear; accepted by Tsu'tey with acknowledging and somehow reminiscent eyes, arrived and begged the help of Eywa, for Grace was gravely wounded. The ceremony was attended by all the Omaticaya people who lived, holding each other, one with each other as they called upon Eywa to save Grace in a new form. Their arms touching, as their bonds formed one mind with one purpose. Grace felt the strange sensation; soft hands upon her back, pulling her, a lullaby, singing her to sleep, hands holding her close. She breathed deeply, raising her arm; "Jake." A strong hand took her own, "I'm with her Jake, she's real." Her last words as the hands upon her back pulled her, Jake's voice faded even as he called her, and the pink lines ascended into infinity. Grace sighed in content, her body grew still. Mo'at stood in hushed anticipation, waiting for signs, but she knew, as the lights dimmed…

"Her wounds were too great, there was not enough time. She is with Eywa now."

…

Grace found herself in a void of color and not color, white but for every color at the edge of vision. She felt the all encompassing presence; a soft, warm glow all around her and, strangely, she still felt Jake's hand holding her own. Grace looked with the eyes she no longer had and a gasp escaped her no longer present lips. It was him. His familiar face smiled at her, sitting beside her dressed exactly as he was when they pulled him from the Link bed so very long ago. "It's good to see you again Grace." he gripped her hand.

Grace sat up, aware now she was in her body, dressed as she last recalled. She looked at him, and herself, in amazement and then her face softened. She took his hand too, and felt her old humor. "Well since you're here, I guess its official. I wish I could have gotten some samples." she smiled.

But, he only looked at her with a strangely mournful love, "You're not there yet Grace, not yet." he said kindly.

Grace looked to him, raising her eyebrows and quirking the side of her mouth, "What do you mean? Isn't this…?" He was shaking his head slowly before she even finished; now Grace sat up, interested beyond measure.

"This is the… bus stop." he smirked, "A slight waiting room before you truly join …her." He looked up then, all around, referring to the presence Grace felt like a warm blanket.

"What do you mean?" Grace asked, wonder clear in her voice.

"I mean I've selfishly asked to say goodbye." he laughed.

Grace's eyes bulged, her other hand taking his as she got to her knees, "You mean you aren't…?" He shook his head, Grace felt a relief flood over her, but also a curiosity. "I knew it! I mean, I thought, hoped, but I always knew… but how? How is it possible?"

He waited for the barrage to lessen, and then looked up slightly, "You're asking how something is possible in the face of the impossible?" he smirked. Grace gave him her 'you're endearing but a smart ass' look. "I'm with a friend right now, being… carried. It's like being in a dark theatre, watching a movie with a person sitting beside you, holding your hand." he said, thinking of the best way to describe it and then shrugging lamely.

"But why?" Grace finally asked.

He only shrugged all the more, "I think Eywa needs me for something, I'm not sure what, but every time we visit here, every time we speak to her… there is only a feeling of strong need. Something I must do before I can go with you." he smiled again, but this time his eyes showed her the mourning love. "Your work on the other hand, is done. You can rest now."

Grace felt a surge of regrets making her grip his hands all the harder, "Do I have to go now? There is so much more I want to say."

He chuckled slightly, "There is no time here Grace, not like we know it. You and me can talk as long as you want to stay with me. But I know you, sooner or later, your curiosity will get the better of you and you'll move on to a still greater adventure where I can not follow. Not yet."

Grace sighed though there was no need to breathe, "Since when did you become so dramatic?" she half smiled.

He returned it with a wolfish grin of his own, "Since when did you become such a great vocalist?"

Grace paused at the odd comment, and then a flash of memory hit her. The time she called him back and ended the strange dance of lights; Grace laughed aloud, shaking his hands, not realizing that she was now in a seated position. "You're going to have to tell me what that was about, and what has happened to you during all this time." She looked to him fondly, memories fresh at her fingertips.

He returned the gaze, relaxing in the nothingness around him like he too was seated in a comfortable chair, "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours." he grinned.

So it was the two spoke of all that had happened, exchanging the stories and feelings of their lives with much laughter, tears, and holding of hands. Grace frowned when he told her about the cave in, and he frowned when she mentioned her smoking. Grace was surprised to hear about Quaritch's speech, and he was surprised to hear about Parkers actions. When she dropped the big one on him, that his human body was still alive -comatose, withering, but still alive- he was shocked beyond words. She laughed, finally getting one over on him, finally making _him_ unable to respond. Tearfully he thanked her for the hope, regretfully saying he wouldn't be able to join her for a lot longer after all. Grace waved it off and they spoke casually of softer memories. All in all, they passed through the years of each others connected lives, reliving everything good bad and otherwise. But… he was right.

Eventually he and Grace felt it was time, and since she had no more regrets, had no more to say… they said nothing. No goodbye, even though that was why he was there. They both knew, now, there were no goodbyes. Grace was no more leaving him alone then she would have if she were lying down next to him. She knew they were connected, in a deeper, fuller way then she or any had ever really known. Just because she didn't have a stinky, achy body anymore, didn't mean she had to part from him or anyone else. That was the illusion of thought, just because one speaks alone in their own mind, that doesn't mean no one else is listening. With a warm and ages long hug, Grace drifted from him. Letting go, floating almost, away from his brightly smiling face. Just before she became overwhelmed by the warmth and closeness of the hands again upon her back and shoulders, the last thing she saw was his stupidly smiling face… waving like a little kid neither in hello, nor goodbye. And he sang. "I looooooove yoooooooou Graaaaaaaaaaace!" and that was all.

…

Kn'indy moaned softly as his presence again filled her, every part of her, with warmth, love, and joy. She had long held him close those few times, when he was unaware. Letting him join with her and feeling the overwhelming sensations like rolling in the heart of a storm. But, now that he was aware, she felt a constant hum of happiness, affection, and everlasting love. There were times when she could not bare such strong feelings and had to dance away from other eyes as she climbed into a secret hollow of a safe tree. There she would give in, exchanging feelings and thoughts and _everything_ with him for hours and hours at a time. She would even forget to eat until he would gently remind her to return to her senses, pulling himself back, holding all of himself silent though constantly there as if holding her hand. Together, like this, her senses were sharper; two minds looked at the world, a being of superior reaction and thought. Two heads better than one.

Jakesully the Toruk Makto stood apart from her, kneeling over the body of their departed friend. Kn'indy had not known her, but he had… and what he shared with her made her know Grace as if she had spent her whole life with her. So it was Peyral of the Omaticaya was just as strongly affected by her passing as Jake and Neytiri. But the time for grief would need wait. Jake sully stood upon the fall of his friend and called for the people to rise. He spoke words which lit fire in the hearts of all the people, and went swiftly on the winds of war to bring many of the clans together. Peyral joined him in this, and was there when he flew to the Ikran people of the Eastern Sea. They were shocked by the news, unaware things had been so dire since the collapse of the mine. But the Olo'eytukan did not even hesitate as Jakesully, Toruk Makto, called them to fight. Old memories, old wounds, debts and honors, swept the Ikran people up like a storm… and they flew with him as the clouds. She was there when the Horse people of the Plains raised their voices too, and rode on their massive herds, hoof beats like thunder. Yes, she was there as the clans gathered… like the gathering of a storm, pushed on by the wings of Toruk Mako and the winds of fate.


	19. Chapter 19: The Storm Breaks

**Chapter XIX: The Storm Breaks**

It was not long before the sky people reacted to the gathering of the clans. Thought they were too few for Toruk Mako's liking, he called them to battle all the same. He sat in council with all the elders preparing a strategy, an ambush among the thundering rocks; all with Ikran would wait with him and then attack from above while below the human infantry would be swarmed with Pa'li. He knew their greatest concern would be air support, the sky people's scorpions, but there was little more he could do to prepare them. They spoke for long hours and when there was nothing more they could plan, the elders separated to relate everything spoken to their respective clans. There was a great deal of worry, especially by the Omaticaya who had already lost so much, but, it was also because of this none wanted to fight more than they. Still, Jake Sully knew they would loose many of his people, many lives. Norm, Tsu'tey, Trudy… Neytiri; he could loose them all, or loose his own life and still be parted from them. He at least could fight in an Avatar and a death wouldn't be permanent …but the others.

Jake Sully was a Marine; he fought in conflict after conflict with overwhelming odds, barely survivable conditions, and he even lost his legs to war, but this, this was something far closer to him, here he could loose his heart. And for that, Jake Sully was afraid. Kneeling before Eywa, Jake Sully prayed. He was not an openly religious person, in fact he felt a bit silly kneeling before the neon willow tree, but he reached out all the same and more then one was listening. Neytiri came up behind him, consoling him and easing his fears in one gentle touch. "Our great mother Eywa does not take sides, Jake; only protects the balance of life."

Jake Sully shrugged, "It was worth a shot." They spoke to each other, falling to whispers.

Another who was listening, high, unseen, wrapped her arms around herself, and crouched in a small hollow. "_Is this true?_" She thought, directed to that presence within her. "_Did they truly kill their mother?_" He was silent, unable to hide feelings of confusion and shame.

Finally, the voice within answered like a close whisper, "_I do not know. I remember, long ago, lifetimes ago, there was some green… parks, protected areas… but they were so rare. I suppose it is possible all green could have been wiped from Earth though I can not make my heart see it._" Kn'indy shivered at the thoughts he tried to spare her from. It reminded her of the other things he tried to hide. The nightmares. She had them often, not only of the cave-in but the destruction of home tree as well. Her new home. She had forgotten how long she'd lived there, perhaps not long enough to truly miss it, but her friend Neytiri had lived there all her life. In her grief and loss, Kn'indy felt her own. Often he would push away these dreams, a gentle hand which caressed the nightmares from her like brushing away a plume of smoke. Yet he could not spare her all of them, or his own. Kn'indy was made to relive his worst moments, seeing them through his eyes. She and he saw horrors together, pain and misery, cruelty beyond belief; and now they were being called to see and feel more of it.

Together they had given more of themselves then any should; a fact he tried his best to hide his hatred of, from her. Though it had lessened because of his being allowed to see Grace one last time, his thoughts of Eywa's curse on him were still a confused and muddled mass of chaos. Something she did not understand but could not help feeling as well. They were one when they were together, constantly, that meant he felt her love of Eywa and she his hatred. The conflict was not unnoticed and they had spent long hours discussing it. He could not deny the good Eywa had done for the Na'vi and for him, but she could not deny the pain and suffering he felt Eywa was the cause of. It pained her too. He began keeping it from her, trying to hide it from himself and thus her, but it was not so easy to withdraw a part of ones' consciousness while within anothers'. So it was when he heard Jake and Neytiri's words the same emotions rose within him, unbidden and he could not suppress them.

"_She is right. Eywa doe not take sides, but she asks others to._" It was a cold thought, the closest to outright hatred she had ever heard him speak.

"_My love, you do not want this._" Kn'indy thought soothingly, trying to still his rage before it took them both, but her words only inflamed him further.

"_You're right, I never did._" She could almost see him pacing, proud head bowed in thought, shortened braid swinging angrily like the lash of his tail.

"_Eywa cares for all of us, she guides all of us._" Kn'indy sighed internally, resigned to having the same conversation.

"_No-she-does-not_!" The voice was a barely audible whisper, but the feeling within her mind was a scream. "_Eywa did not guide Nantang to take the flesh from my arms; Toruk, the flesh from my legs; Palulukan, the flesh from my back, and the ground to take the whole of my body! Why would she do this! Why would a sentient being still force us to consume or be consumed, to borrow energy until we ultimately give it back? What is the point of it all! Nothing is guided it's all just a… just a… a meat grinder!_" Kn'indy could hear his thoughts and his emotions, so when he spoke the last words she heard them in Quaritch's voice. Kn'indy reached with her own hands into blank air, her brow wilted. The more he fell into these deep emotions the further lost he became, fading from her.

She tried to clam him, "_This is the balance, the way things have always been. All rely on one ano-_"

"_WHY!" _His voice broke, like a dam, and sorrow flooded her. "_WHY have things always been this way? Why do they have to _be_ this way? Why can't I just be with you living day to day, hand in hand- without worrying about hunger, or sickness, or being killed?" _She felt his rage swellingand Kn'indy felt her limbs begin to shake. "_Oh God Kn' I just want to see your smile again._" She could feel the tears running down her face, tears that were not her own. Her body shivered; she wanted nothing more then to hold him in her arms, but she was loosing control, he was too strong in these emotions.

"M-my love, you must be calm, I c-can not-" She had to speak the words, so strong was he within her mind, somehow there became less and less room for her. This of course caught the surprised attention of the two Na'vi beneath them, but so lost in his rage were they, neither cared if they were discovered. Her fear and the beginnings of pain –pain he was causing her- reached him deep within and he relented, trying to hold back the storm from taking them both. The strongest they had experienced together. It was apparent, with all her woes, she was no longer strong enough to handle the magnitude of his emotion. He would have to dwell in it alone.

"C-Call Ean'taw." He hissed with the effort, his voice, bleeding into her own. Kn'indy instantly stood, screeching out the call loud and clear in the air, but her body was unsteady in the convulsions and she fell, grasping, clinging to branches to land heavily on the ground. The soft pink whips were stronger then they seemed so her fall was not terrible, nor were many torn from the branches. Kn'indy landed with a cry of pain just as Jake and Neytiri came around from the opposite side.

"Peyral!" Neytiri cried, running to her side. Jake went to help as well, but both their hands were stayed when they saw the lights of 'Peyral's body begin to flash.

When the slight Na'vi woman unleashed an agonized howl in two voices, Jake stepped back. "Holy mother of-!" It was then Ean'taw, Kn'indy's Ikran, flew down to them. In agitation it looked over the low state of its rider and glared in confusion at the others, with a shriek of inches long teeth it crouched protectively over her, though clearly unsettled by the lights. Kn'indy reached upwards, taking its antenna and made the bond. The instant she did, Ean'taw folded like a house of cards. Neytiri and Jake watched in utter confusion and slight fear; Ean'taw then lifted its head, pushing itself off the ground carefully. Its eyes were bright, luminous, and flashed unnaturally. It looked at both Jake and Neytiri, not like an animal with distant eyes, but with clear emotion and thought. It was hard to describe the expression which fell over its face, but it could best be described as… fear. Of them. Thrusting its head forward the Ikran roared, with two voices, eyes fully dilated into black pits.

Jake lifted Neytiri up and behind him, his ears flattening; he didn't think to reach for his knife, being so concerned for Neytiri, he could only do what all would do when faced with a suddenly dangerous wild animal. Kn'indy stood however, the lights diminished from her body and pushed on the animal. "My love, go, go!" She shouted to him. The Ikran turned its head, swiveling to put an eye on her, and unleashed a guttural hiss. There was the briefest moment of eye contact, only a split second where Kn'indy's fear was plain on her face. It was enough. The Ikran flapped its powerful wings, heavily, battering the three Na'vi in the winds. With some effort it achieved lift and soared away, letting out one long suffering cry of haunted despair. Jake and Neytiri stood as it flew away, four shooting stars disappearing into the night. 'Peyral' was crying, on her knees, shaking her head. Despite her fear, and Jake's arm on her own, Neytiri ran to her.

"Peyral! What has happened?" She said in a hushed tone.

"He has left me, he has left me for good." she sobbed, clinging to Neytiri. "Where he goes, I can not follow." The anguish in her voice, the unsightly remorse moved Neytiri to simply hold her. Even Jake's own confusion, outrage, and fear were crushed by the depth of her apparent loss. They didn't know what she was talking about, but her naked regret was enough to leave both silent… and let her weep.

…

Nothing! Nothing! All for nothing! All is lost, all, is, lost! I can't think, I can't breath, it's all just burning ash and embers, the home tree is falling upon me, the earth is closing in around me, I'm being crushed! I'm being crushed! I can't feel, I can't dream, I am dying, I am dying, I am dying, Oh god! what god? Eywa why have you forsaken, your cup of poison, the bodies, all the bodies, blood on my hands, the yerik falls dead, eyes dead, starring at me, machines without souls, lost in the machine, Grace? Grace? Where is Grace—Grace is lost, dead, I am dead, I have left my body, dead to the world, dead and lost, lost to everything, everything is lost, mother help me. Mother help me I am lost. - Hours, years, days. I don't know. With a soft breath I feel the storm begin to lessen. I feel my body is weightless, my senses sharp. I feel a flow all around me. Looking below I see endless miles of green, green as far as my many eyes can see. I see in colors I never imagined, the sky above and all around me empty and clear. I realize I am flying. A surge of exhilaration.

In this body, in this body I feel strong, stronger than I have ever felt. Kn'indy never flew with Ean'taw after she took me. Fearing what would happen if she joined with him. I guess now that we have, I wonder if I can go ba-… I suddenly remembered the look she gave me. Fear. She was afraid of me, afraid I would hurt her …no… I can never go back. Instinctively I flap my wings to stay aloft, once, then glide. I feel a rush of pity for Ean'taw whom I now know I inhabit… perhaps… forever. It is not, his, fault I am the way I am. No, it is Eywa's. Again I feel a swell of Rage, only now realizing that with my sudden clarity, the storm hasn't past. I'm merely in the eye of it. Already I can feel the dangerous overwhelming emotions and thoughts trying to take me again. But this is all Eywa's fault. Her doing. I will not let her damn Ean'taw with me… I will give Ean'taw back to Kn'indy… it is all I can give her now. Somehow, an image appears in my mind, an image from Ean'taw, showing me something in response to my thoughts which he had been quietly listening too. Another tree of souls.

A smaller tree, high in the thundering rocks. Higher than any Na'vi can climb, and in a place only Ikran know of. I hate to be the first Human or Na'vi to go there… but then remember I am no longer human or Na'vi. I ask this body to go, and synergized, we go. We arrive as the sun barely reaches its peak. I worry about everyone, but there is nothing I can do for them, except give Kn'indy Ean'taw back so she can defend herself. So I settle myself around the beautiful tree, a tiny hollow much like the other larger tree of souls. Ean'taw, blue sky, walks gingerly over to one of the strands and bows his neural whip forward. It was time… time I demand Eywa tell me what she wants, why she has done this, or throw me back into the stream of energy. I would gladly not exist now… there was nothing left for me here. As Ean'taw made the connection, I felt the familiar hands on my back and shoulders, pulling me, whispers, voices and lullaby. But I would not be soothed. Lashing out with the most of my ability, I brought her the storm.

I thundered, I flashed, billowed, rolled, hatred and chaos. I brought my turmoil to Eywa herself. I stood again in that same white surrounded by color, but not in body. I was too far gone, too use to being only consciousness; instead the void was filled with emotions, images, and sounds, my memories. I showed her all she had done to me. The scars, the blood, the pain, the death. Quaritch was screaming at me to look upon his scars, I watch my own body being buried, I felt the unbelievable pain of the bond being severed, and I showed her Kn'indy's fearful face. I screamed at her: LOOK UPON ME EYWA! Look upon what you have done to me! Why? Why! What did I ever do to you! You don't even care do you? Not about me, not about Pandora! Not about Kn'indy! We're all just playthings for you! All just food sources and collections of chemicals! You constantly remind me and everyone you are here, but you do nothing but take! You took everything from me! Why! WHY! FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THIS WOLRD- WHY!

I finished, feeling the rage give way to tears which I could not cry. Kn'indy's face alone remained, looking at me, smiling at me from long ago. Before she was scarred, before she was cursed. I threw the vision away, leaving everything void once more. Whispers of my outburst still echoed, all around us. There was no response at first. No feeling, no images, no sounds. As if she was waiting… and then… I began to feel a hand gently upon my face. It was only a feeling, but two hands took my face, like Kn'indy did so long ago. I felt myself being moved to see, moved to see something I could not before. "They said I had good brain chemistry, that was why they wanted me." A memory, from my first days in the Avatar program, standing around with wires all over me; the black jumpsuit. "And as I sank, I said, someone save me!" My voice singing through the mouth of a tubhead. "Hey Grace! Grace, Grace! Hey Grace!" I said, and the imagery of her lifting her head and rolling her eyes before she turned to me, not bothering to hide her instant smile. "What, what, what? What?" She looked at me endearingly. "Run Grace, RUN!" I screamed shoving her away as gun fire flew around us.

I ran through the jungles, tears and blood falling; the pink light whips covered me, curled around me like a womb. For the first time I saw them connect to my cut braid, they _moved_, and connected to me. Pulsing with light. "GraaaAAAAaaace!" I saw Kn'indy writhing, the pulsing glow of the lights on her body unlike anything I had seen on Pandora. Her unnatural voice groaned, pleading almost. While this voice and memory howled, directly beside it another image and voice joined it. This voice was stronger, yet quieter, drowning out the anguished howls. "You do not know what you came from, you are in darkness, but you know what you have now and that is enough to know who you are now, in this Eywa gives you light… and she gives you me." Kn'indy held my face. The image shifted slightly, I saw Neytiri holding Jake's face, looking into his eyes.

"Our Great mother does not take sides, only protects the balance." The last two words repeated, echoing continuously. **'the balance' 'the balance' the balance'** I saw the Na'vi killing both Palulukan and her child, then, raising its head high it roared with a depthless remorse unheard by many Na'vi. **'the balance'**. Jake was kneeling again, praying. "They killed their mother." **'the balance'** "and they're going to do the same here, unless we stop them." **'Our Great Mother does not take sides' **"I'll fight for you, you know I will." **'does not take sides' **"but I could use a little help." She showed me everything that had happened, in a kind of music, stirring me, calling to me deep within. It was all connected. Kn'indy's voice and image again, the words echoing on either side, rising in intensity, like the pounding of a drum.

"I feared for you. but not because I saw you were weak." **'the balance- does not take sides - I could use a little help.'** "but because I have watched your journey back from the dark to one of the greatest warriors among our people." **'the balance-does not take sides' - I could use a little help' **I saw images of Na'vi and sky people fighting, machines tearing into them with fire and bullets. A burning Pa'li ran through the jungles. A human in a scorpion fighting for the Na'vi fell, as did Tsu'tey, my friend. A war, which was happening now, right now! It was all swirling, spiraling, pulling me further and further in an insane cacophony! "Even when I saw your bond become so strong **you truly became one with Pa'li and Palulukan.**"** The balance- does not take sides – I could use a little help.** All became crystal clear. I understood. The web of events, the connections. It all. made. sense. Eywa needed me, my understanding, my will, my control. She could not take sides, she could only protect the balance, but she could give me the power to set the balance right. She needed me to understand the sky people, to fight against them, and protect her self and her children from them. She needed me to help her guide them. Instantly I felt the storm no longer around me, no longer a part from me, but _of_ me. I was the storm, and the storm was Eywa.

My consciousness, by her hand, flew through the very ground. Permeated in all things green, ingested by the plant eaters, who in turn were consumed by the predators, dispersing physiochemical deposits, mutations, evolutions, creating receptors in the antenna and body for Eywa through all creatures; I filled, _everything_. With one mind, I saw a thousand different lives, saw the world through thousands of different eyes and ears. It was like looking at untold tiny television screens all showing what was happening all at once, time did not exist here, nor did individuality. I was one with all things, seeing what they saw, splitting my consciousness into all of them to tell them what they needed to do, holding Eywa's hand so I would not go mad. She called to them, through me, and as one they lifted their heads, hearing Eywa and my own voice. Spreading like a storm, all things were given the knowledge of what they must do. "**I could use a little help". ** And as one, every living thing on Pandora moved to join the war.

…

_I was a herd of Angtsik, strong and powerful, crushing everything around me. I saw a tiny blue being, so fragile._ _**Not her, do not hurt her, go around.**_Neytiri stood in awe as a herd of Angtsìk flowed around her, crushing and knocking over every tree but sparring her and her tree without trouble. "Eywa had heard you! Eywa had heard you!" She cried. _I rolled over any in my path, pained but not harmed, by gunfire. An AMP stood in my way, firing its hateful gun. __**Step on the clear center.**_ An Angtsik rose, stomping hard upon the suit that carried Wainfleet. _As Clouds of Ikran more numerous then could be counted, I flowed around the Ikran and their riders, not touching them or Jake upon Toruk. __**Leave them, fly from the side, take the ones inside, throw them out.**__**Land heavily from above but do not bite, push downward, push away.**_ Ikran swarmed upon the scorpions, driving them out of the sky. _I smelled fear and blood as I lopped across the ground with swift ease, my mates and family beside me._ _**Bite at the faces, tear away the masks. Jump where the end of their spears do not point. Do not hurt the blue ones who smell of green.**_ Neytiri ran with Viperwolves that streamed across the ground, diving upon the sky people as they fired their guns.

_Strongest, deadliest of all, I was fear I was terror! I rent the tiny things, I flew across the ground, tearing and biting, it was glorious, glorious!_ _**She needs you, do not hurt her. Do not hurt her.**_ Neytiri cried out in alarm as the Palulukan roared. It stared at her, growling, and then bowed its head. _I was connected to a thousand fold Na'vi, their thoughts directing me, and my own sometimes directing them to protect them from that which they didn't see, or showed them another way to approach. _ Arrows flew as rain from the back of Pa'li, suddenly spurred into motions and organized movements with very little of their riders directions. They each felt a strange whisper, all subtle, so very subtle like soft threads. _I am Peyral and I am Pxay._ Each instance, each and every instance where Peyral would be questioned, "Do I eat this one?" _**No that one fires upon the others, he is 'Norm', run with Norm, protect him**_or "How do we attack the nest which spews death?" _**Fly from above, drop straight down, look where the spear points, come from behind, you first, then you so they turn to you. Drop now. Go.**_ He answered each time.

As one the wildlife of Pandora struck and acted in ways impossible for normal animal behavior, especially for those that had never seen a sky person gun before. Peyral fought with a thousand lives, like some great video game, where his consciousness was directing each of them all at once; but to him it was one at a time, as there was no time when Eywa held him, her mercy to protect his small human consciousness from sheer insanity shutting him down. Together the masses of Pandoran natives fought creatively, efficiently, not bothering to fight each other or harming the Na'vi. Even when predatory instincts would say otherwise- _**Do not fear great smell of death, do not step upon small smell of decay, do not eat the blue who smell of green**_- He fought with all the viciousness and wild fury of the Pandoran food chain, of which, humans were at the bottom. He died many times, bullets or fire, falling from the sky. He felt each death as a tiny screen went blank, but he moved on, through and through, and soon the tide began to turn.

It was violent, bloody, work which the morally grey beasts of Pandora were accustomed too. Life and death were their natural day and night, for the small human however, it all weighed upon his greatly. Or, it would have. Lost in the violence, in the life and death struggle, in the very heart of war, he stood as the center of the storm. Peryal cried, screamed, and recoiled in horror… but only on the outside of the storm. While within it, within the very blood of blood, within the very death of death, within the heart of so many hearts pounding as one… he could only laugh. This was also why Eywa had chosen him, because he was familiar with madness… being lost… and fighting against it. She could not break an already broken mind. So while Eywa did what she had to, to protect her children and the balance, Peyral laughed in blood lust and madness.

…

I surged through the forest, Neytiri's thoughts mingling with my own. Blood and carnage, death to the small strange ones! Then there was an insistence in her, upwards; looking up I saw an explosion, a great ship fell from the sky, and a blue body fell too. She knew that area, it was where one she loved slept. What did this matter? There was killing, death to be done! But no… she urged me, go, and I recalled, why, so I went. Running, running. I caught smell. Metal. Man. But it was familiar. I knew that smell, running, we saw the back of an AMP. Neytiri says: _Attack, attack! Stop him! He will hurt my Jake!_ I do not care, I know only one thing.

"_**QUARIIIIIIIIITCHH!**_"

Roaring, I fall upon him. The gun. The gun first. No more guns! No more deaths! You will be the last to, die, Die, DIE! I slam it down again and again, smashing it into pieces and he hits me with a hook of his fist. Jarred, I'm pushed away, biting at him. I'm thrown, I hit a tree and he draws a knife. A knife is dangerous, but I- Neytiri is saying kill, kill; Palulukan is screaming, die, die; Quaritch shouts, "Come to Papa." I do not care, I do not care- I will kill him, I will kill him, I WILL KILL HIM! I leap! But in that second, as I roar, as I fall upon the tiny man… I see his face… the same face I fell upon before; and I remembered. Back then, his face, pointing his gun, then, lowering it… no. No. NO. I hold back, trying to pull back, and I'm caught. I feel the knife in my side, again and again, it hurts… I'm thrown, I hear him leaping. I must get up. Palulukan screams for death, Neytiri cries out, but all I can think of is… why?

As I feel the death again take me. As I feel myself moving on, a part of me is worried because now there are none to stop Neytiri or Jake's human body from being killed. But it is of no consequence to me. There is killing around me. Why should I care? Why should I care. Suddenly, I find myself drifting towards another consciousness. A familiar one. Ean'taw… Kn'indy… names from another lifetime. Why should I care… They are flying, fighting. Those they love dying around them. Why should I… I feel it then. There is someone with me, a human, here. In this storm. I turn my head, she is standing there, looking at me sadly.

…

"It's over… you can stop." Grace said.

Amid the vortex of images, all showing war and madness, in this place of consciousness made form, he looked at her and his face split into the death grin of Palulukan; he spoke with the voice of Quaritch. "**I am one with all things, all dying things. I am become death, devourer of worlds, consume and destroy.**"

Grace shook her head and smiled softly. "That's not your name."

He laughed like Nantang and his legs became the crushing legs of Angtsik, he lifted the wings of Toruk upon his back, his neck long like Ikran, with the crown of Yerik, and a tail like Riti's; "**I am Kea! No names; I am Pxay! Many names; I am Peyral! The name itself; I am the Storm Rider, the Scarred One, the Child; I am the Sky People, I am the Na'vi! I am life, I am death, I am the Avatar of Eywa!**" He roared and from his voice so spoke all the creatures of Pandora.

Grace simply looked at him, unafraid, her smile never faltering, "No." she shook her head, stepping toward the Pandoran Chimera, so small in comparison. "Your name is…" she smiled, her eyes filled with love. "Son." And all at once the many parts of him fell away. As a shockwave, a drop of water, ripples on the pond; the all consuming consciousness falls from him. No longer the rolling thunder clouds, spiraling around them with untold images of death, blood lust, and madness, it flowed away… all that remained was an odd form, half human and half Na'vi; he who was the first Avatar, he who first ventured into another form of existence, he that symbolized the combination of two peoples from two different worlds light years apart, brought together in one form; blue skin like the sea and sky, golden eyes brighter than the sun, body lights like stars, five fingers, five toes, a tail, swiveling ears… …an Avatar child.

"Mom… I'm so tired…" The tiny voice whispered weakly. "I want to go home."

"Rest now," Grace bent low, pulling the small form close to her. "You've done enough." Holding him in her lap and shushing him softly, she began to sing a lullaby, a song which echoed in the void as hands of pink light embraced him and all faded into pure white light.


	20. Chapter 20: Beginnings and Endings

**Chapter XX: Beginnings and Endings**

The canopy was shattered, the blade inches from him, an all too familiar situation. Quaritch had been practicing for just such an occurrence, again; without pause he inhaled, and ripped the broken knife blade from his own gun out of the cock pit and swung it at the dodging Avatar. The memories of that man came back to him, he was a strong fighter, reckless like Quaritch himself. Quaritch took two swings with his great metal hands. Sully's Avatar stood just out of range. He couldn't get at the man behind the broken glass and Quaritch could not see Sully's Avatar well enough to attack. With a sneer, Quaritch stopped the AMP entirely, popped the emergency release hatch, and donned his Exopack. Sully's Avatar recognized the vulnerability and drew his knife; Quaritch looked at him, breathing in deep breathes of air, earth air, and was suddenly haunted by the memories of a past battle. He restarted his AMP and a strange impulse surged through him, for reasons he had long since buried, Quaritch leaned his head forward and the words escaped him before he even knew they were there.

"Hey Sully, how does it feel to betray your own race?" Jake Sully's Avatar responded with a powerful hiss, Quaritch sneered in disgust. He couldn't even reason with this one, he truly was a lost cause, Quaritch faintly wondered why he had even bothered… "You think you're one of them? Time to wake up." Quaritch moved the AMP over to the bunker, smashing through the window as Jake looked on in horror. By the merest chance the link bed he crippled was empty, he moved to the other one, determined to rip Jake Sully out of his sweet dreams. A heavy thud on his back and Jake was upon him, he reached up, swiping at the Avatar body. With a determined roar the knife came down, by the merest chance the knife only caught him in the top of the shoulder, instead of his head. With a mighty throw, Jake was slammed into the ground. Pandoran air was reaching him now, and he coughed harshly. Quaritch saw the fits of disconnecting and took his leisure stalking the arrogant Avatar.

With a slap he slammed Sully's Avatar into the ground again and pulled him up by his braid. Bringing him eye level, Quaritch slowly removed the dagger meant for his head. Quaritch showed him the knife; there was no point in talking to Sully anymore, not in this fake body. Quaritch was going to show Jake just how fake it was. He'd still have time to get the real man some air, it took four minutes for the deadly atmosphere to take you, he had plenty of time; let Sully squirm as the Avatar finally went cold. Maybe its death would wake him up, make him face who and what he really wa- the first arrow slammed into his chest- Quaritch let out a yell of agonized and surprised pain, dropping both Sully's Avatar and the knife. He looked up, seeing the Na'vi bring back her bowstring, and watched as the second arrow slammed into his heart. Quaritch didn't feel any pain… the poison and shock did their work well. He barely had time to get his human hands on the shafts, his AMP mirroring his action in a mockery of lifeless machinery. With an earth shaking impact, Quaritch and his AMP, the pinnacle of man and machine- the symbol of misguided earth, fell. A single thought escaped him, only a single word. "_…why?_" As Quaritch's eyes faded, as he felt himself slip away, he felt something else… soft hands upon his back and shoulders, a whisper of voices, like a lullaby.

…

It was difficult rounding up all the soldiers and trying to find all the wounded. The clean up after the war was bloody, terrible, and a mess of dying peoples. While the fighting itself was driven by adrenaline and fear, the aftermath was always worse. This was why war was so terrible, when people were finally able to gage the cost. Never before had so many Na'vi been lost in such a short time, and they were not willing to loose more. So when the combined clans marched upon the compound, they did not bring weapons with the intent of killing. The humans gave up easily. Without Quaritch to lead them, Selfridge was next in command. This was the one flaw of the RDA's grand steamroller plan. The dead eyes didn't care who issued the orders, as long as they were issued with a pay check. If they had been marines, filled with a patriotic zeal to save their world, they might have continued to fight… and the outcome may have been different. But. The RDA knew if they used marines, loyal patriotic people with a sense of duty, there may not have been any conflict at all. Such was their greed their downfall.

Selfridge had no qualms opening the gate and letting all the Na'vi in. Jake Sully himself, asked for their formal surrender and he gave it. The Na'vi exuberance at their victory would have to wait however, many of them immediately returned to the battlefield. They were needed to join those still hunting to for the dead and dying they had not found. Jake let them go easily; he was preoccupied with securing the station, he found far less resistance then he thought. Max and Norm helped him round up everybody and it was many days of loading them and supplies enough for the return home that followed. Selfridge looked sadly upon Jake Sully's Avatar as he moved with the exodus of people. Jake only motioned him on. Once they were all loaded and the ship departed, then, then it was time for the Na'vi to celebrate and mourn their losses. All the fallen were honored; it was a great time for all, a time of loss, a time of song and of sorrow, and a time of surprise.

Jake Sully again met one of the saddest of his people, Neytiri's heart friend. She who had fought beside Jake in the sky, and whose true name was Kn'indy. It was then Jake heard the whole story of the remarkable man who was second only to himself in helping the sky people and Na'vi come together. He learned of his accomplishments, and his death, and then… his disappearance. She told him of the 'human body' which was still alive, somewhere in the compound in 'cryo'sleep, and begged the Toruk Makto to help her find him and return his mind to his body. Even if it was a small human, it was still him. Neytiri assured her they would do everything they could to help them… but, Jake had a sad surprise of his own. They had found the cryo chamber, with the marker from Grace… empty. His body was missing, had been for a long time, and there was a message left for him marked for his eyes only. Since Jake doubted he would ever find the man himself, he asked Kn'indy if it was alright to play it for her. She agreed and they all three were shocked to see the ghost of Quaritch.

"I'll bet you're surprised to see me." The holographic recording said. Jake and Neytiri shared the same frown of stone. Kn'indy only looked at him, as if he would give her all the answers. "Well if you're getting this, I'm probably surprised too. It means I'm not around to stop anybody from getting in here and taking a look, unless you've somehow slipped by my security. Whoever you happen to be, I'm sure you wondering where the body is. You can look all you want, but you won't find it, not in here. So unless you happen to be the former owner, I suggest you leave. Now." He crossed his arms, "But… if it happens to be you." He paused giving the viewer a quizzical look. "If it is you, if you somehow, by some miracle, are actually watching this…" He paused again, and smiled wryly. "Then you won't have any trouble remembering the last words I ever said to you." And just like that the image froze.

Jake scowled, Neytiri looked lost, not understanding all the English but not Kn'indy, she knew what he spoke of. She was there. She repeated the words, and the image flicked for a moment as the password was confirmed. The instant it was, Quaritch dropped his smile. "Well, I'll be." He said in slight bemusement. "If you aren't the most determined, toughest, hardest son of a bitch on Pandora." He smiled endearingly. "Well son, I hate to bring you this news because I'll be honest with you, I believed you were KIA. I went to your funeral too; it was quite a parade. But, I'll tell you this, not a one of them knew you like I did." He stood firmly. "You and me, are warriors on different sides of the same fence. A fence made by fools too busy counting profit margins lights-years away from any real battle field. But you and me. We were in the dirt, down in that black mess beneath this hellhole, in the bowls of hell itself!" He cocked his head to the side, once again grinning endearingly.

"I guess that would make me the devil… or you. Blue devil, white devil, both of us; we do what we have to do no matter by what name anybody calls us. And I'll tell you son, none of that bothered me, not in the slightest. I'll gladly be damned for what I fight for, for what all of us fights for; the continued survival of the human race." He spoke with such conviction and such determination, Jakes and Neytiri hid the first signs of a begrudging respect; Kn'indy only looked on sadly. He lifted his chin. Then, indecision struck his eyes. "Until you came along I thought I knew what that meant. I knew before, it was us or them. That's how it has always been. Us, or them. But when it came down to me or you."

He looked angry then, "You come along with your 'it's us or nobody'. I didn't know what the hell to think anymore." They had never seen him like this, and Jake knew, probably not many had. "Well, I couldn't have that. Can let the superior officer doubt. Can't let the symbol of humanity's strength to the troops, the scientist and everybody, look soft. Oh no. We are alone out here, and if I am weak, we are weak. And I can't be weak, my people need me. But you. You showed me we are all weak. An Avatard with a heart of gold." He turned away, silent for a long while. "Why the hell did you offer me your hand?" He said it distantly, then turned back, the wall of iron once more.

"Well. You didn't deserve what they did to you. Locked up like one of their science experiments in a jar of alcohol. No, sir. Your body isn't here. I gave it the proper honor of a military funeral." Kn'indy, Jake and Neytiri's hearts sank. "Twenty four gun salute, buried it right here on Pandora. The place you fought and died for. Deep enough to where nothing's gonna touch it. You have my thanks son. You reminded me of what it is to be a man of my word. Now both your bodies are buried in the dirt, where men like us always end up." He stopped then, and smiled broadly. "Well hell, except for you. Since you're standing right here, and if you are… I am truly sorry." He stiffened and gave a sharp salute, and that was all. The image simply died, along with Kn'indy's hope of every getting her love back again.

Jake and Neytiri comforted her; it was just one more name to add to the song of the lost. For many days the people grieved, Kn'indy among them. But there was still happy times to come. Jake and Neytiri for all the grief around them, were happiest because Jake was going to be reborn. He would be with her forever, as a symbol of the Na'vi rebirth itself. On that wondrous day, the Na'vi came together; they sat in a great circle, arms holding onto one another, voices raised and the lights of Pandora pulsing as one. Together they sang for Jake Sully, Toruk Makto, to come back to them; to return to the people. Jake lay down beside his Avatar, the vines from the Tree of Souls lightly touching him, and a corridor of light…

Jake found himself in a white void, surrounded by nothingness and colors. It was an odd sensation of warmth, understanding and love. He felt like he was coming home. For the merest moment he thought he saw a familiar face, thought he heard the familiar laugh of a dear friend, and then he was being pulled. But. Before he felt his eyes open, he caught the image of a back… a blue back… with five white scars, like the bones of Ikran wings. But it was gone in an instant, and Jake Sully opened his eyes to the rest of his life.

…

Kn'indy sat apart from everyone most of the days that followed. Her Ikran returned to her, and she was spurred with a strong hope, which died again when she found only Ean'taw in his own mind. It was painful, and she withdrew from the rest of the Na'vi for a time, once more. She often visited the hollow where they, as one, spent most of their time together. She missed him. Terribly. Her heart ached, and her body sighed without substance many times. It was an odd life, to be alone. She felt she knew about the world, felt her place was well know, when she was a child. She had wanted to be a hunter. The best hunter there was in all the clans. Perhaps not the strongest, perhaps not the swiftest, but still the smartest and keenest of sense. She had requested to go to the Omaticaya, to learn with their hunters, training with each clan to master every skill. Besides, the leaders enjoyed staying in touch with all the news of the clans outside of the great gatherings and trade. Messengers and those traveling to learn from other clans were not uncommon. Until the sky people came.

Then a great fear and uncertainty swept through all the clans. They sent representatives at first, learning about these sky people. But once that curiosity was satisfied, it was left in the hands of the Omaticaya who were closest; every now and then messages were passed between clans, but even that too faded as no real change had developed. So, life went on, and trade with the Omaticaya lessened, because the elders feared sending out hunters near the lands where the sky people did their mysterious work. Thus it was the clans learned to provide in others ways for the missed scant trade, and such routes became much disused. The Ikran people then, had no real desire or need to bother the Omaticaya, not at the risk of interfering with their interpretation of Eywa's will when it came to the sky people. After the incident with the school… none dared venture near those lands again.

So they were reluctant to send Kn'indy, one of their most promising hunters, she who had spent many long hours alone in the forests to perfect her craft and became slightly apart from the rest of the clan. But they let her go. She flew with Ean'taw, rejoicing in their freedom, and hoping to find new friends and possibly a strong mate when Toruk drove them from the sky. It was a near miss and Kn'indy fled with Ean'taw very far, Toruk was determined though and gave chase even in the dense foliage. Kn'indy was not as good a sky hunter over the forest as she was over the sea, so she had trouble maneuvering in the foliage. Toruk kept up with her easily and cornered her in a cave. She had to remain within it for a whole day while Toruk circled, certain he had his prey trapped.

By mere chance, this location was near a certain tree, wherein by night hid a certain person. Those who hunted him were shocked and frightened by the presence of Toruk, who chased them gladly, taking Nantang and Na'vi in its claws before it let the rest go. With this stockpile of food stuffs it generally decided it had stayed by the cave long enough and would have left, had it not caught site of the Na'vi standing atop the tree… so easy… Kn'indy heard the screams from the night before, but was too afraid to venture out at night but the sounds did not sit well with her. Her heart sickened; if she was a better hunter she could have saved them, or gotten away before she was trapped in this cave. So, when next morning she heard the screams again, she did not hesitate to fly after Toruk. She was horrified and awed by the sight.

A lone Na'vi struggling, raining blood, but Toruk was not actually trying to get a bite on him. It was, the strangest thing… Toruk actually released its claws after it got a good look at him, for some unknown reason. His body was falling and Ean'taw flew after him before Kn'indy even thought it. When Toruk chased them, it was not predatory, for if so it would have caught them easily with the burdened Ikran. Instead it was almost… protective… when they landed back in the cave Kn'indy despaired that they may be trapped forever… but Toruk only snapped and screamed in fury, settling at the mouth of the cave to watch. Somehow, by Eywa, when it saw she wasn't trying to harm him, it simply left.

Kn'indy was so shocked by this, she immediately had to know who or what this Na'vi was, Ean'taw also showed unfathomable concern for him… she was so intrigued and yet also so saddened when she saw he had been bond cut. She tried to save him, but Ean'taw was not swift enough with two riders. When he went mad, they fell, and when she could have ended him. Eywa and Ean'taw stopped her hand. It was then her curiosity got the better of her, along with her fear, making her to force the choice she still regretted. What she had found blew away everything she ever thought to expect from bonding with another Na'vi… the force of his will and life was… overwhelming. The emotion in him released the emotion in her and she realized for the first time just how alone she was… His loneliness echoed her own and she vowed to never leave him alone again.

Much later, again she marveled at him, as the other Ikran seemed to swarm over him, fawn over him. Even when old Palulukan attacked the hunters at the sea side, she saw it deliberately avoid him and go after another. Even when he was entangled with it, it still did not even think to roll and attack him. It was as if… as if he was one of them. All of them. Even Pa'li was drawn to him. Kn'indy felt the same magnetism as did many others in the clan. Despite his battle scars, he was handsome, kind, funny, and strong. He reshaped himself, selflessly, and only doubted his inability to help more. Kn'indy found herself falling in love with him, even without the bond which she had to occasionally use to bring him back to his senses. All of this Kn'indy dwelled on, in the hollow of the tree.

She did not know why Eywa would give her such a gift and then take him away. But her prayers to Eywa, asking for guidance, went unanswered. Only the constant, quiet love and voices of the past greeted her. She was saddened that her love's voice was not among them. Had Eywa truly forsaken him? He did not fight to save Pandora; and perhaps died, his consciousness fading, once Quaritch buried his human body. Perhaps it was only a natural sky person ability to send his mind into others without the linking bed. She did not know, and would never know now that he was gone… Suddenly, Kn'indy tried whistling. Her people had used the sounds to call their Ikran, but never for musical whimsy. She had trouble at first, but her melancholy and being slightly closer to the memory of him made her try and try again. She had just tried the first few notes, gotten the tune correct but out of key when she thought she heard something. Pausing, Kn'indy tried whistling again, it echoed; was it just the hollow of her tree sending the tune back to her?

No, the tune was sharper, precise, _correct_. Kn'indy launched herself out of the hollow, her heart refusing to feel but her feet taking her anyway. She stood out on the branch, over the stream. She tried the tune again. Now outside, the sound came through clear, high, and beautiful music to her ears. She almost raised her voice in cheer when she saw a Na'vi sitting by the water, but, her smiling open mouth froze. It was an elder Na'vi by the stream. His hair was pure silver from age, long braids trailing down his back and ending near his tailbone, and his main bond braid, his queue, was just as long as the rest of his hair. Kn'indy's numb heart sank even though she tried not to feel. The breath of her joy died on her lips; the demon that was false hope had tricked her again. She cupped her hands to her face, rubbing her eyes and sighed. Remembering the elder who sat beneath their tree, she crouched low, and spoke politely, "You startled me friend, where did you learn that song?"

Slowly the elder stood she marveled at his broad shoulders and still strong body… a body much stronger then any Na'vi ever needed be… she saw long white scars outlined with blue like lightening tracing down his arms and legs, his skin was a pale blue-grey like storm clouds, and when he turned to her, his smile was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. "I heard it by the sea side."

Kn'indy did not even wait for his answer as she leapt bodily from the branch and into his arms, body slamming them both into the ground. Neither had time to release a groan of pain before she began showering him with kisses, even as she spoke. "My love- how- mpf- did- you- mm- how- is- mmh- possible?" She said, not caring if he answered. He gave back all of her kisses much the same way she was before she noticed the slight changes. His body was healthy, young and strong, despite the scars and silver hair. She knew as much by the way it responded to her affections.

Still, he tried to answer as best he could. "Eyw- hmr-burried-mhh-mfff-together-muml-DNA-mmfh."

Kn'indy reluctantly pulled away taking his face in her hands to look at him, "What did you say my love?"

He only smiled at her, his fangs immaculate, "Eywa shall provide." he answered simply and that was enough for both of them. They eagerly continued their sweet kisses, building into a stronger passion, and rolling in the stream itself before breathlessly standing and running hand in hand to the source of the water, a small water fall with a safe pond. They dove in and soon continued their reunion. Long after, together, they sat upon the shore completely nude and bonded. His remade Queue worked just like every other Na'vi, though his hair was now far more aged then his body, it still shined with a youthful luster. The silver lining to the storm clouds. They spoke in whispers of love and eternities, happy in each other's arms. "Somehow my human body also ended up beneath the ground, and there Eywa could take both bodies and use them to make each other whole." He traced his finger around her chest; Kn'indy marveled at his tale of rising from the black dirt, whole and alive, as if made from it. Everyone is born twice, and this, was his second life.

"My Love, which name shall we call you now? I have told the Omaticaya I am Peyral, because you were with me." Kn'indy said, her fingers mirroring his.

He smirked, "Shall I be Kn'indy then?"

She laughed at that, then sighed in content. "I have left that name. Left it with the Ikran people of the Eastern Sea. When I joined the Omaticaya, with you, I was born again as Peyral. It is how they know me, and how I have grown."

He thought oh her words a moment, "Well you can always still call me Pxay. Then I could shorten your name to Pey, then we would both be 'pay's and we'd have to switch between which pay was which per day, we could call them pay days! And when people called for Pay we could ask if they meant Pey or Pay. Think of the confusion!" He smiled that Nantangish grin of his, they both laughed.

"I could still call you Storm rider." She smile, but he took her fingers and kissed their tips.

"No… there is no longer a storm within me. It has passed. My emotions still bother me, but I can handle them. The lights, the voices, the euphoria and terror shall never come again, nor shall I ever loose myself to it again. The storm was Eywa, within me, my mind, protecting and preparing me for the day she would need me." Kn'indy listened as he spoke of the things he saw and did, felt them through their bond, and held him close afterwards. Once again she marveled at the person before her, changed so much and still holding firmly onto life. He had been with Eywa, in her eye, her hands, and at her heart… it was hard to believe he would choose to come back so many times. Together the two blue figures rested on the serene banks of a quiet pond, beautiful flowers and trees surrounded them and the music of Pandora's wildlife serenaded them. The warm sun and cool breeze caressed their skin, it was paradise, together.

"My love, why did you come back?" She finally asked, seriously.

He only looked to her, his depthless eyes answering her well in kind, "For you."

Kn'indy smiled at him, and touched his face gently, "Then you were right to choose your name back then, and I was silly for throwing it away so easily." He looked at her quizzically, trying to remember, then he just smiled sheepishly and shrugged. She looked at him in a laughing astonishment, "You forget? How can you? It is what you fought to live for, what you came back to life again and again even after everything that was done to you. You could have stayed with Eywa, you could have remained on your world instead of joining this 'Avatar Program', you could have simply remained at home and none would have blamed you. But you did not; you came here, to Eywa, and to me. Through much hardship, much sorrow; you fought for two peoples, two words, that have done nothing but wrong you. And even now you hold no anger in your heart. It is no question why it should be your name, even if just to remind us all and you, why you did all that you have done." She brought her fingers to his lips, and then caressed his face.

He looked at her speechless, his mouth open, "What do you mean?" he finally asked softly, touching her as she did him.

She answered with the same love in her eyes he had shown in his and she smiled so softly. "My Yawne, your name is love."


	21. Epilogue: There are no Goodbyes

**Epilogue: There are no Goodbyes**

Well. I suppose you're wondering what happened next; but, a gentleman never tells. Oh, not _that_ but after that? Well sure, life went on. Hell's Gate was left in the care of a few humans who were allowed to stay, mainly as a place for the Avatar drivers to continue their work. Earth wasn't shut out, not entirely. Research needed to be completed, complied, so the humans that will inevitably return would know where they stood: under the watchful eye of the Na'vi. All the clans returned to their homes, Ni'win and Txon'taw among them; he had stayed beside her the entire year it had taken for her to recover, they had grown very close in that time and became a mated pair soon after. Ni'win was not as swift on her horribly scarred legs, but, she became the stealthiest Na'vi of the entire Ikran Clan of the Eastern Sea… I wonder where she learned her moves? Anyway, all returned home, well, all except the Omaticaya. A new home needed to be found for them, but they are slowly recovering from the time of great sorrow.

As for Jake and Neytiri, they couldn't be happier. Now that Jake has a permanent Na'vi body I'm sure they'll be trying to have children which will grow up to be strong and proud Omaticaya warriors. I can see it now, Neytiri will run up to Jake: "Ma Jake!" She'll shout, "What is Neytiri, my darling!" He'll say alarmed and lovingly. "Babies!" She'll squeal, thrusting out her flat belly and with both hands on it, then she'll do a sort of running in place dance with her eyes closed while humming happily. Well okay, maybe that wouldn't happen; but if it did I hope I'd be there to see it. Honestly, I don't know if it's even possible for the Avatars to have children… it wasn't really discussed, I mean, we never expected that level of intermingling with the natives. …or if it was I must have missed it. I'm not a geneticist remember, I'm just an artist slash gamer slash tester.

Actually, after all that's happened I suppose I'm kind of a warrior now. A warrior named love. At the very least I'm a pretty good hunter; Peyral is still better, but I'm stronger. I'm sure she'll keep it that way by making me carry whatever she catches. We'll try for a family too though, oh boy will we try. We live with the Omaticaya, but I make it a point to try and visit the humans at the base. They still need guides after all, for their science missions. I think I'll get to know Jake better, I'm sure it will be nice to have a friend who doesn't look at him in awe and who can hunt with him while telling each other earth jokes… I know I'd really like that. I understand how hard it is, having a great story over your head.

It's hard enough looking like I do, not that the Na'vi give me or him a lot of special treatment, they just give us both a kind of respectful space or ask us to retell our stories, which isn't so bad, but there is still a kind of culture shock and neither of us are willing to leave everything from earth behind. He treats me like any other person and I do the same to him, we just get to make cat references to each other and laugh without any of the other Na'vi knowing. All and all, I think this new life of mine is going to be pretty exciting. Everything is beautiful here, and so, _clean_. Fresh, new, and at the same time life is old here. I can't go back to Earth as I am; well, maybe some day. The ships and communications are still bouncing back and forth, and who knows what will happen in the future? Eywa guides and protects us, gives and takes from each of us, and I really don't have any complaints. Well. Okay, I don't' get any more of the special treatment from the animals anymore.

Ean'taw likes me, but the rest of the Na'vi Ikran and Pa'li still have to warm up to me. Wild animals treat me like anything else; though… I could swear I get recognized every now and again. The storms don't bother as much, emotional turmoil, post traumatic whatever… it gets bad sometimes, but Peyral is there for me. We get through it. It's getting easier and it will get better. For now though, I'm happy. _We_ are happy. And that's all that really matters; in this life, or any, on this world, or any world. But, what do I know? I'm just an Avatard who gave his life for what he believed in and somehow got it back. I still scare myself when I see my reflection sometimes or blush when I hear the songs they sing about me. All I really know is, for some reason, I'm needed, wanted, and loved here; by the peoples, by Eywa, and especially by Peyral. It must be that good brain chemistry they were talking about, but I still don't know what that even means.


End file.
